Vienna is one of Europe’s most popular and fastest-growing capitals – a challenge that the city on the Danube is turning into a virtue. It is employing smart ways to develop new residential spaces; in aspern Seestadt, for example, the technological planning was foregrounded and preceded structural work in selected buildings. The aim of this thoroughly digitalized approach: to prepare the grid for growing numbers of renewable sources and increase both the efficiency and lifespan of buildings. With success: Many smart districts around the world are already utilizing the insights developed in Aspern. By 2030, heat and electricity in the new development, which will be home to 20,000 residents, will come entirely from renewable energy sources.
Reference: A holistic and smart concept for aspern Seestadt
Location: Vienna, Austria
Project focus: Digitalization, decarbonization, electrification, Smart Grid, Smart Buildings, Smart ICT

Project benefits
Annual savings on the campus through the use of waste heat – e.g., from appliances – equating to annual heat recovery of around 195 MWh
Reduction in CO2 emissions* in a residential building with 300 rental apartments by combining photovoltaics, solar-thermal energy, and heat pumps
*Compared to a gas boiler heating system
Energy requirements of a thermally autonomous residential building with 300 units generated entirely from renewable sources.
ASCR takes a holistic view of the future of energy and is making the system available to experience live in its entirety.Robert Grüneis | General Manager | Aspern Smart City Research Gmbh & Co KG (ASCR)
In aspern Seestadt, we’re bringing end customers and technology providers together to develop an overall supply solution for the future of cities. Our focus is not on specific buildings or the power grid; instead, we always look at the overall system of a district or campus. The result: a smart district that acts as a blueprint for the future of energy.
Project insights
Only by consistently thinking ‘outside the box’ can we optimize the urban energy system in a way that actually benefits the city and its residents.Robert Grüneis | General Manager | Aspern Smart City Research GmbH & Co KG (ASCR)
Working together, we can now test new technologies and services for our customers that will make the energy supply of the future climate-friendly.Michael Strebl | General Manager | Wien Energie GmbH