Skip to main content Skip to main navigation Skip to site search
  • Home
  • All articles of topic Switzerland

All articles of topic Switzerland

Information receiver become energy generator – this satellite dish is powering a data centre for Leuk TDC.

From stargazing to solar – satellite dishes reborn as PV plants

-

The innovative solar system is now powering a data centre for a Swiss telecom service provider. The complexity of the installation necessitated a DC-optimised solar inverter solution.

Installers in switzerland appear to have less on their plates this year than last.

Switzerland: Solar set to cover 14% of power demand

-

The country is making steady progress on solar expansion – but there's still ground to cover. While current demand for PV systems remains modest, speakers at this year’s Swissolar conference outlined how that could soon change.

The NalpSolar plant in Tujetsch/Switzerland will be next to a reservoir (visualization).

Switzerland: Alpine „NalpSolar“ project launched by Axpo

-

Axpo has given the go-ahead to construction of the „NalpSolar“ alpine solar plant in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Work is planned to commence this March. Located 2,000 metres above sea level, the 8 MW PV plant will generate important climate-friendly electricity, particularly during the winter months.

Ecocoach

Electricity storage units for complex applications

-

The new Eco Battery Hub systems from Swiss manufacturer Ecocoach are available in capacities from 26 to 390 kilowatt hours and charging and discharging capacities from 16 to 150 kilowatts. The modularity offers the advantage that operators can scale systems at any time and adapt them to higher requirements.

Unsurprisingly, the steeper the angle of the modules, the less influence snowfall has on the yield. However, the details of the measurements are exciting for future planning.
New results

Only minor losses due to snow on alpine solar installations

-

Researchers in Zurich have been measuring the yields of solar modules in the Alps for seven years. The first results are now available. They can be incorporated into the future planning of alpine solar plants.

Universities of Applied Sciences launch new platform for projects with alpine solar plants.
Switzerland

New platform for Alpine solar plants

-

Four universities of applied sciences are launching a new platform for Alpinsolar projects. This provides an overview of the current status of all planned, rejected and realised alpine solar plants in Switzerland. The aim is to improve transparency and acceptance. The reason: many of the projects meet with resistance.

Advanced Building Skins brings architecture and photovoltaics together.
Advanced Building Skins

Conference on BIPV in Bern in Switzerland October

-

On 28 and 29 October 2024, modern facade architecture will be on the agenda at the Kursaal in Bern. The speakers at Advanced Building Skins will also be taking a closer look at solar facades.

The alpine solar installation is planned here on the Vorab. However, its economic viability is still up for debate.
Switzerland

Repower builds alpine solar park in Swiss Alps

-

The plants in Graubünden have a legally binding building permit from the canton. A large proportion of the electricity will be used in the local ski resort.

Distribution

Menlo starts roadshow across Central Europe

-

Roadshow will have stops across Germany, Poland, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia, Romania and Czechia presenting a 4-hour training session and a chance for networking at each stop.

 Over 1,000 participants attended this year's Swissolar photovoltaic conference.
Energy mix

Switzerland aims for 50 per cent solar energy in the electricity mix

-

The contribution of photovoltaics to the electricity supply in Switzerland is set to increase dramatically. How this can be achieved was a key topic at this year's Swissolar photovoltaic conference.

 The conversion took several years, but the result convinced the jury.
BIPV

Norman Foster Solar Award for church renovation in Switzerland

-

The energy-efficient refurbishment of St Mary's Church in Mollis in the canton of Glarus has won the prestigious Norman Foster Solar Award 2023. The prize was awarded in Geneva in mid-February.

 Vertical solar panels on a raspberry field in Switzerland - this will soon be a common sight.
Agri-PV in Switzerland

Fruits and solar power from a Swiss field

-

In future, agricultural land should be used more than once: In addition to harvesting fruit and vegetables, solar power will also be available in future. Two Swiss universities now want to promote this and have founded the Agrisolar Forum.

Air-source heat pump

Smart software that optimises heat pumps

-

The Reglicontrol Logic software developed by Regli Energy Systems from Zurich ensures that the heating systems work very efficiently, according to the company. Novaair is Regli's best-selling heat pump.

Solar installations

Solitek realises special solar projects in the Swiss Alps

-

Solitek has joined forces with Reech AG, a Swiss engineering and planning company, for the two projects in the Alps of Switzerland. One on the wall above a road and the other in St. Moritz.

 The charging station is laid in the ground and the car can then charge inductively when it is parked above it.
Electric mobility

Swiss developers test inductive EV charging

-

The partners want to investigate how inductive charging lowers the barriers to switching to electromobility. The reliability of inductive charging systems will also be analysed.

A visualisation of the planning for an Alpine solar plant.
Switzerland

BKW presents six new Alpinsolar projects

-

The Bernese utility BKW is stepping up the expansion of solar energy: following the launch of the Belpmoossolar project, the Group is now presenting six Alpinsolar projects in its own canton. All of the planned plants will produce almost 100 gigawatt hours of electricity per year.

Built on the water: An Axpo test plant for the Nalpsolar project.
Switzerland

Axpo plans to build an alpine solar plant in Glarus Süd

-

Following the commissioning of Switzerland's largest alpine solar plant to date in the municipality of Glarus Süd in August 2022, Axpo is now planning to build a ten-megawatt solar plant in the same region. The plant will supply particularly important winter electricity and also increase value creation in the municipality.

The plant on the dam wall at Muttsee is already in operation.
Switzerland

Axpo plans second alpine solar plant in Graubünden

-

Back in September 2023, Axpo presented its plans for the construction of a 15-megawatt ground-mounted plant in Ilanz in the canton of Graubünden. The energy company is now planning a second ground-mounted plant in the municipality with a capacity of around 30 megawatts.

The construction of the solar power facade at Aargauerstrasse 182 in Zurich is currently still subject to planning permission.
BIPV

Energie 360 Grad in Switzerland receives approval for a solar facade

-

Energie 360 Grad will install solar panels on the roof and facade of its headquarters as planned. Due to a lack of in-depth knowledge about the fire risk, the Canton of Zurich building insurance company had not authorised photovoltaic systems on facades in the meantime. The company has now successfully provided a test certificate with its own tests.

Roller hall at Stahl Gerlafingen: 4,500 solar modules will soon be working on this industrial roof.
Switzerland

ADEV builds solar roof system on steel mill

-

A solar roof system with over 4,500 modules and two megawatts of output is being built on the roof of Stahl Gerlafingen's roller hall. The ADEV energy cooperative and the industrial company have already signed the utilisation contract, and construction will begin at the beginning of next year.

The modules are mounted at different angles of attack in order to sound out the optimal alignment of later commercial installations in the mountains.
Alpine solar generators

Results of the test facility at Totalp near Davos are out

-

Photovoltaic systems in the Alps produce up to two times more solar power than generators in the lowlands. In winter, actually even more. But it depends on the system configuration.

The Fastned stations stand out with curved their solar canopies.
EV charging

Fastned builds station for fast charging near Zurich, Switzerland

-

The station offers eight very powerful charge points. It is located at the Büsisee Nord rest area on the A1, near Zurich. It is part of a tender in which 20 new stations are planned.

SIG also paid attention to aesthetics in the construction of the solar cycle path.
Switzerland

SIG covers cycle path in the canton of Geneva with a solar power system

-

SIG has covered a cycle path in the canton of Geneva with a photovoltaic system. The 486 bicafial modules were integrated into an aesthetic substructure on a 200-metre section.

The project partners have already simulated what the solar folding roof at the Ardon South service station on the A9 in the Canton of Valais will look like.
Solar mobility

Solar folding roofs for 45 Swiss motorway service stations

-

In the western cantons of Switzerland, DHP's solar folding roofs span all motorway service stations. This means that a solar output of 45 megawatts can be built up. The electricity is mainly used for electric mobility.

The solar box is unfolded and then connected to the systems already in place.
Solar mounting

Foldable solar system speeds up installation

-

A foldable solar system for flat roofs could speed up installation. The Swiss company Smartvolt and licence partners offer the smart solar box in Switzerland and abroad. It arrives at the installation site pre-assembled, wired and ballasted on reusable plates.