Swiss President and Energy Minister Doris Leuthard met a huge endorsement of her Energy Strategy 2050. The voting on May 21, with two-thirds of Swiss citizens endorsing the new energy law, can be considered as Federal President Leuthard’s personal victory.
The viewpoint of the opponents of the new law was different from the president’s. Having strong arguments they questioned the possibility of future high additional energy costs for customers that could reach up to CHF 3,200 a year. With their over-exaggerating campaign, using images of people taking cold showers, the critics of Leuthard’s law in the end lost the support of the masses.
Experts and voters are unanimous
Other than the Swiss people there are also experts in the field that show enthusiastic support for the new energy law. Rolf Wüstenhagen, professor of Renewable Energies at the University of St Gallen, is one of them. “The Swiss energy strategy is the only one worldwide to have been approved by voters - and therein lays its value,” says Wüstenhagen.
According to Wüstenhagen, the next step is to put the renewables to full work. The technologies for renewables are ready, but not brought to the market yet.
Rolf Wüstenhagen also shows confidence in the idea of Switzerland being able to make its energy transition without coal fired power from Germany and atomic energy from France.
Wüstenhagen continues with the discussion of various energy producing technologies that are already developed and functioning in Switzerland at the moment. He is sure that Switzerland will have enough energy in the future, especially in water, “The country has a lot of hydropower, which can contribute to seasonal storage. I’m talking about normal reservoirs here, which can be filled before winter.” Other than the hydropower, professor Wüstenhagen is also optimistic about the potential of the solar technology.
Swiss people believe in the future. The support and vote for the Energy Strategy 2050 is certainly an optimistic sign about the upcoming years, with the citizens showing readiness to overcome the challenges of relying on renewable energy.
Pioneering work
Nevertheless, nobody can be really sure whether Switzerland will be able to produce enough energy from water, sun, the ground or wind, necessary for its future development. However, the Swiss have always been strong believers in technology and in their own strengths. The Solar Impulse project, co-founded by Bertrand Piccard, carried this message around the world on its solar-powered plane, despite the odd hiccup along the way. And last year Switzerland inaugurated the new 57-kilometre Gotthard tunnel through the Alps – the longest rail tunnel in the world. For years, such a feat was unthinkable. Dams, solar panels, wind turbines and geo-thermal power are all technologies currently in use that show great potential.
At the end of the day one thing is clear, Switzerland has a huge task ahead. The country faces a challenge that cannot simply be tackled through individual charisma and personality. When the Swiss say they are willing to pay – as they did by voting in favour of the new law – they also want control.
