Speaking to a meeting organised by the Swiss mission in Brussels on 30 November, he said: “Switzerland could be the only energy island remaining in Europe after 2015 because it is not concerned by European Council prescriptions.”
Brussels officials believe that Switzerland could become one of Europe’s most important hubs for electricity storage if it was to join the single market for electricity.
The country has an advantageous position in the centre of the continent, good infrastructure and flexible capacity for hydropower.
But frustration appears to have grown as negotiations on a bilateral energy agreement to harmonise electricity rules that began in 2007 have dragged on, even though a deal had been expected earlier this year.
“Switzerland is not part of the European internal energy market, while Norway has integrated the internal electricity market long ago,” Vinois later told EurActiv, adding that an energy community treaty with the Balkan states, Ukraine and Moldova would also now be implemented by 2015.
Cross-border flows
Thomas Tillwicks, an executive board member of the national grid operator, Swissgrid, strongly denied any suggestion that Switzerland was risking energy isolation, pointing out that Swiss lines carried 11% of all cross-border electricity flows in Europe.
“Switzerland and the EU are interconnected and part of the same system,” he said. “They belong together, can’t be separated and have to find common solutions by working together.”
Despite strong and long-standing ties between Switzerland and the EU, only one priority corridor out of 10 suggested in the energy infrastructure package announced by the European Commission earlier this year mentions Switzerland.
It proposes developing interconnections between North Sea energy sources and Swiss pumped storage power plants, a sector which is expected to develop rapidly in the years ahead.
But the EU believes much more could be possible.
“The rules applied to the exchange of electricity are not common and are surely preventing further developments,” Vinois told EurActiv,
“We see in-depth cooperation between EU and Switzerland as a win-win undertaking provided we may agree on the common rules to be applied.”
A hub or an island?
Asked for clarification on his comments at the conference, Vinois conceded that ‘energy island’ was a term used by the European Council to describe regions lacking good interconnections to the EU.
“This is not the case of Switzerland, which is well connected to the rest of EU,” he said.
Switzerland’s energy sector emits very little CO2. Much of its electricity comes from hydroelectric power, with nuclear reactors accounting for another 40% of generated power.
Earlier this year, Bern announced plans to phase out its nuclear power sector entirely.
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