What is the future of electricity storage in Switzerland?

One important pillar of this strategy is the further development of electricity storage capacity in Switzerland. In the next years, three large-scale pumped hydro storage power plants will be connected to the grid. The first, the Limmern pumped storage plant (1 GW), should become operational in 2016.

Does Switzerland support pumped storage operators?

Despite the government’s objectives defined in the Energy Strategy 2050, there is currently no direct support via subsidy for pumped storage operators in Switzerland.

Does Switzerland need a nuclear phase-out?

Given Switzerland's challenge to decarbonize its energy system and that the power sector is already almost carbon-free, the lessons provided from our analyses could be useful to other European countries which electricity system with a significant share of hydropower like Switzerland and seek to implement nuclear phase-outs.

How does a cost-covering fee affect electricity production in Switzerland?

Further, the introduction of a cost-covering fee for feed-in to the electricity grid, in order to subsidise new renewable energy sources in Switzerland, disadvantaged traditional hydro electricity producers. As a result, high prices during peak load times dropped, which substantially lowered the revenue stream of pumped storage plants.

How much energy did Swiss nuclear power plants import in 2016/17?

In the winter 2016/17, when the generation of the Swiss nuclear power plants was pronouncedly below average, the net import of 10 TWh represented even 39% of the domestic net generation in the winter half year (SFOE, 2019b).

What is Switzerland's energy transition strategy?

In 2017 in a national referendum, Switzerland's citizens voted to commit to an ambitious energy transition [ BFE, 2013 ]. The strategy has three main pillars: increasing energy efficiency, increasing the use of renewable energy and gradually phasing-out nuclear power plants between 2019 and 2035.