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Hydropower in Switzerland Reliable, renewable, and central to security of supply
Around 60 percent of the electricity produced in Switzerland comes from hydropower. This energy is domestic, reliable, renewable, and virtually CO₂-free. Hydropower forms the backbone of Switzerland's electricity supply – day and night, 365 days a year.
Switzerland is at the forefront in Europe: only Norway, Austria, Iceland, and Albania have an even higher share of hydropower. Axpo contributes significantly to this leading position. As Switzerland's largest producer and operator of hydropower plants, Axpo has a broad portfolio of run-of-river, storage, and pumped storage power plants in various regions of the country.
power plant control centers
in Switzerland
Energy volume
in GWh/a
Installed turbine capacity
in MW
Reversion and concessions
The operation of hydropower plants is based on temporary concessions. When a concession expires, the concession grantors basically have two options: they can either grant the previous concessionaire a new concession and, if they wish, increase their stake in the power plant in the process. Or they can exercise what is known as reversion and take over the power plant themselves, either entirely or with partners. If they opt for reversion, the rights of use for the water are transferred to the respective canton or municipalities. In this case, too, existing operators such as Axpo can continue to play an important role as potential partners for cantons and municipalities. This is because the operation of a hydroelectric power plant involves various business risks and requires expertise in numerous areas.