Alpiq CEO sees security of supply at risk without EU treaty

Alpiq CEO sees security of supply at risk without EU treaty Keystone-SDA

The security of Switzerland’s future electricity supply is at risk unless a deal with the European Union can be concluded, warns a Swiss energy company boss.

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Without an electricity contract, Switzerland would no longer be able to import energy to the same extent as before in difficult situations, Alpiq CEO Antje Kanngiesser told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper.

This is not primarily about large annual deliveries, but rather about so-called balancing energy, which must be imported or delivered within 30 seconds, for example, in order to keep the electricity grid stable, Kanngiesser said in the interview.

“This balancing takes place across the entire European electricity grid,” she said.

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According to Kanngiesser, the dangers to the stability of the Swiss electricity grid exist regardless of which technologies are used to generate electricity in Switzerland today and in the future.

Nuclear power plants go into overhaul for at least four to six weeks. In addition, nuclear or other power plants could go down unplanned, said the Alpiq CEO. “This goes to show that all technologies need a backup.”

According to Kanngiesser, even lifting the ban on nuclear energy would not solve the energy supply problems in Switzerland in the next 15 to 20 years. “We must now press ahead with the implementation of existing projects to expand Swiss energy production and campaign for the electricity agreement,” she therefore demands.

At the same time, the long-term operation of existing nuclear power plants will be examined.

Translated from German by DeepL/mga

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