After no vote in Surses GR on the Zurich mega project: the Solar Express will become a local train

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Nothing again. The Graubünden municipality of Surses GR clearly says no to a high-alpine solar power plant. She is now in good company. In Saanen BE, two alpine solar systems were rejected last December, and the project in Ilanz GR was rejected a month earlier. There are also other projects that have been cut together.

Thanks to the Solar Express, they should all be built faster. Parliament had pushed the law through parliament with the help of the emergency law. Large mountain solar energy systems are heavily subsidized and are easier to obtain permits for. To achieve this, they must supply the first part of the electricity in 2025. Most will follow later.

Shortly after Parliament reached an agreement, planning began in many places. Gold rush atmosphere everywhere. But that is gone now. The Solar Express will become a local train.

“Many people have no consciousness”

Jürg Rohrer, professor of renewable energy at ZHAW, does not believe that the ambitious deadlines are responsible for the voting defeats. “Many people do not realize that we cannot wait another year for the energy transition,” says Rohrer. “We need to expand solar energy twice as fast as before.” Without an obligation to use solar energy, this cannot only be achieved on the roofs.

The Solar Express stipulates that a first part of the systems must supply electricity in 2025 so that money can flow. But that’s not crucial for Rohrer. “According to Solarexpress, the remaining 90 percent of the electricity from the new systems should be supplied in 2030. This is the most important condition.”

The Solar Express must supply two terawatt hours of electricity. Rohrer estimates it will be significantly less. “In the end it will probably be less than one terawatt hour, or less than half.”

The National Council already discussed an extension

In December, the National Council even discussed a possible expansion of the Solar Express. “We now have to send a signal to investors,” said FDP State Councilor Susanne Vincenz-Stauffacher (57) when explaining the application to “NZZ am Sonntag”. “Otherwise more and more will fall off.” However, the proposal had no chance in the National Council.

On Thursday, the responsible committee of the Council of States will discuss, among other things, the energy bill. It’s entirely possible that an extension could become an issue again — at least for the projects that survived a community vote. Because there are too.

So far, projects that are close to existing infrastructure, such as ski lifts or gondola lifts, such as projects in Davos GR or Laax GR, have the greatest chance of success. It remains to be seen how many projects will actually be realized. The obstacles are high, not only because of the people, but also because of the infrastructure. The road to significantly more solar energy is long.

Source:Blick