The private energy transition makes the heat pump industry cheer

From 31,000 to 50,000 or up 61 percent, from 146,000 to 224,000 or up 52 percent. The demand for heat pumps is increasing massively in both Austria and Germany, and oil and gas heating systems are being replaced. For entrepreneur Karl Ochsner, market growth in Germany is even more important than that in Austria because the market is larger and offers even more potential.

The heat pump manufacturer has prepared for this: In recent years, production has been converted from stationary to continuous production, and capacities have been expanded. “This enabled us to grow even faster than the market in Austria and Germany,” says Ochsner. Within a few years, the capacity was gradually doubled from 10,000 to 20,000 devices.

The sales development of this company reflects the development of the industry: from almost 50 million to 60 and 92 million within three years. If there had been no delivery problems, sales would have climbed to more than 100 million euros by 2022, says Ochsner.

Price increases also played a role in the development: the products were priced between twelve and 18 percent in two stages last year, says Ochsner. “But we weren’t able to pass on all of our suppliers’ price increases.”

Ochsner manufactures heat pumps in Haag, in St. Peter/Au and in a rented hall. 80 percent is exported – mainly to Germany. “We are still looking for production halls for production lines in the Amstetten area,” says Ochsner. In 2026, these production lines are to move to the new plant in Oed. The number of employees in the group should increase from 500 to more than 600 employees this year. According to the head of the company, the budgeted turnover is 130 million euros, but he doesn’t want to get cocky. “There will be other years to come.”

Pay attention to noise and efficiency

The higher electricity prices would not have put a damper on growth. “Yes, 25 percent of the drive energy is electricity, but 75 percent comes from the environment, from the sun, from water or production processes,” says the heat pump producer.

The increased electricity costs would even give the highly efficient systems from domestic providers a competitive advantage. Because with the increasing demand, the supply of imported goods has also increased. “I always point out to customers that we have designed our heat pumps for local conditions.” Products from the Far East, on the other hand, would become purely electric heating at sub-zero temperatures, according to Ochsner.

Ochsner advises consumers who are interested in switching to a heat pump to pay attention not only to the efficiency figures of the systems, but also to the noise information: high-quality devices are whisper-quiet and therefore also “suitable for terraced houses”. The manufacturer should also be able to offer customer service.

Free tickets to the energy saving trade fair

From Friday, March 3rd to Sunday, March 5th, the public days of the energy saving trade fair will take place in Wels. Up until February 28, OÖ Nachrichten and Linz AG are giving away 1,000 two tickets to all subscribers. You can take part at nachrichten.at/gewinnspiele. Charging stations and household appliances will also be raffled off in the OÖN energy-saving competition.

At energiesparmesse.at there is a directory of all 341 exhibitors as well as a lot of additional information about the supporting program, among other things.