Vienna, Austria

Information and advice

The Wien Energie Haus is a joint initiative launched by the three utility companies owned by the city of Vienna. The programme provides assistance in energy matters adapted to customer needs and the services required, for example hot water, light or heat. The Wien Energie’s customer care centre does not first and foremost sell the energy provider’s products, but conveys the energy-political objectives of the City of Vienna. Running the centre costs €1.9m per year, which are part of the city’s budget, some of which is recouped through providing services such as Energy Performance Certificates.

Energy counselling is free of charge and constitutes an essential element in the push to a resource-minded, cost-efficient and environmentally-friendly energy supply. Assistance is youth-oriented and aims to make young people aware of how to use valuable energy sensibly. The exhibition includes real-life situations where people can actually feel how simulated winter conditions affect different types of windows. Customers are made aware of differences in quality and technical problems such as condensation; they can measure for themselves the different inside surface temperatures. By 2011, a million visitors had been to the centre (Wien Energie, 2011).