Balanced Swiss portfolio

Thanks to Alpiq›s balanced Swiss portfolio, Alpiq›s electricity sales in Switzerland were only minimally affected by the economic downturn. Activities centred on energy business with shareholder-customers and strategically important resellers. The first phase of electricity market liberalisation brought about virtually no change in the price environment prevailing in the Swiss marketplace.

Work to upgrade the Cleuson-Dixence storage power station in the canton of Valais has taken several years. With a capacity of 1,300 MW, the plant will start generating electricity again from 2010. As a result, Alpiq has in excess of 3,000 MW of highly flexible generation capacity at its disposal. Another important infrastructure project is the Nant de Drance pumped storage power station in the Valais. The plant is being built completely underground so as to minimise the impact on the environment. In addition, the gas-fired combined heat and power station in Monthey, canton of Valais, was inaugurated in 2009.