Basis of Preparation

The scope of consolidation for Alpiq’s Sustainability Report is the same as for the Alpiq Financial Report. All subsidiary undertakings, over which Alpiq Holding Ltd. has operational control, are fully in scope for the consolidated Sustainability Report. However, subsidiary undertakings of which Alpiq is a majority shareholder but does not have operational control (i.e. the Grande Dixence hydropower plant) or of which Alpiq Holding Ltd. is a minority shareholder (and over which Alpiq does not have operational control) are treated as an investment. The GHG emissions are therefore reported under Scope 3 according to the respective ownership share.

A list of Alpiq Group companies and investments can be found in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in the chapter Group companies and investments of the Financial Report.

The Sustainability Report considers both Alpiq’s upstream (suppliers) and downstream (customers) value chain. The upstream value chain mainly entails suppliers of power (including Alpiq’s minority shareholding in assets), suppliers of physical trading power, and sellers of power purchase agreements (PPA). The downstream value chain entails the business-to-business relationships with transmission system operators (TSOs), distribution system operators (DSOs) and PPA buyers, as well as the business-to-customer relationships in France. Infor­mation is not provided on every actor in the value chain, but on the upstream and downstream actors identified to be material during the Double Materiality Assessment (DMA).

The Sustainability Report 2023 was prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). However, as it becomes mandatory for Alpiq to report according to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) by 2025, the Sustainability Report 2024 already follows the ESRS structure, and covers additional topics as compared to the previous-year report. Some metrics for the Sustainability Report 2024 have already been calculated as required by CSRD. If a metric has been replaced by a new metric to be in line with CSRD requirements, it will be clearly stated that the new metric is not comparable to the one used in the previous reporting period. In particular, the calculation of CO₂ emissions (see chapter Gross Scopes 1, 2, 3 emissions, total GHG emissions, and GHG intensity) has changed drastically due to the application of CSRD guidelines (operational control methodology), which leads to a large increase in total GHG emissions and emissions intensity. CO₂ emissions and KPIs related to CO₂ emissions have therefore also been calculated according to the previous equity share meth­odology, and two different figures are shown to allow for comparison with the previous reporting period.

While the Sustainability Report 2024 follows the ESRS structure, it is not fully CSRD-compliant. Alpiq’s Sustainability Report 2025 will be CSRD-compliant and is currently in the development phase.

In addition to the topics identified as material during the DMA, which will be described in detail later in this report (see chapter Material Sustainability Matters), this Sustainability Report addresses the issue of due diligence in the supply chain in relation to “Conflict Minerals” and “Child Labour” as required by the Swiss Ordinance on Due Diligence and Transparency (DDTrO) in relation to Minerals and Metals from Conflict-Affected Areas and Child Labour, based on article 964j paragraphs 2-4 and article 964k paragraph 4 of the Swiss Code of Obligations. This report also covers the non-financial reporting requirements of the Responsible Business Initiative (RBI) as well as the requirements of the Swiss Climate Ordinance (SCO), which were formerly covered by the requirements of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). The specific chapters related to DDTrO, RBI and SCO are listed in the respective index in the Appendix.