Energy transition

Repower facilitates implementation of the energy transition in Italy and Switzerland in three areas: renewables, energy availability and reliability, and energy efficiency.

Impacts

Renewables: Repower helps implement the energy transition by investing profitably in renewable energies and developing energy storage projects, thereby supporting ongoing electrification and decarbonisation efforts. However, the generation of renewable energy at hydropower, wind power and solar power facilities can also have negative effects, such as increased land use (see Changes to biodiversity and landscape).

Energy availability and reliability: A reliable electricity and gas supply is essential to the economy and society. In addition to a loss of comfort, power cuts can also result in high costs and losses in manufacturing processes and even jeopardise lives (e.g. in healthcare).

Energy efficiency: The energy efficiency of power plants and the distribution grid determines the energy lost in the generation and distribution of energy and has a direct influence on the costs of energy for customers. By providing efficiently generated and distributed energy, Repower makes a major contribution to the economy.

Risks

Renewables: The expansion of renewable energy entails risks for the stability of the electricity grid and supply security. It can also pose a reputational risk for Repower if it is pursued without due consideration for the landscape and biodiversity and without involving local stakeholders.

Energy availability and reliability: Power cuts can be costly for Repower and its customers, especially if they are prolonged. If energy that has already been sold is not sufficiently available, procuring energy to replace it can be expensive.

Energy efficiency: High efficiency losses along the value chain increase Repower’s operating costs and thus reduce profitability.

The risks of transmission system failures, damage to generation facilities and distribution networks, and unexpected fluctuations in energy prices are part of the Repower Group’s risk and control assessment (see Introduction).

Guidelines and due diligence

Renewables: In line with its strategic objective of a 100 per cent renewable portfolio in the long term, Repower’s investments in its own new generation assets focus exclusively on renewable technologies.

Energy availability and reliability: To ensure a reliable supply of electricity, Repower Switzerland complies with the requirements of the law and is an active member of the Association of Swiss Electricity Companies (VSE). The quality of supply is assessed and monitored annually by the Swiss Federal Electricity Commission (ElCom) on the basis of standard international indicators.

Repower now controls 100 per cent of Repower Renewable

Repower Switzerland has acquired all the shares in Repower Renewable that were previously owned by Omnes Capital. This means that the Repower Group now controls 100 per cent of the company, which develops and operates wind, solar and hydropower plants in Italy. The extensive portfolio of generation assets currently includes facilities with a total capacity of 113 MW. In addition, there is a full pipeline of planned power generation projects that have already been approved, with a total capacity of a further 150 MW. The purchase is aligned with Repower’s strategic objectives.

Measures

Renewables: In Switzerland, Repower generates most of its own electricity at hydropower facilities. The existing hydropower plants are expertly maintained. Repower systematically modernises existing plants to increase their performance. The company also endeavours to build new hydropower facilities such as Chlus power plant. In Switzerland, Repower continues to expand its own solar plants with the aim of installing them on all suitable Repower buildings. In terms of electricity generation, Repower Italia has gradually expanded its portfolio of renewable energy plants while at the same time improving the efficiency of existing facilities. Repower Italia has a total of ten wind farms, 22 solar installations and two small hydropower plants with a combined total generation capacity of 122 MW.

Energy availability and reliability: Targeted grid expansion makes it possible to further advance the energy transition through renewables. Repower Switzerland does strategic target grid planning to ensure that renewables and the need for a stable power supply are integrated at an early stage. Repower Switzerland has proven specialists and tested processes to ensure a reliable supply of power. For example, the company has its own organisation of specialists on call to rectify disruptions in the power supply that can occur owing to events such as storms. Every year Repower also takes part with other distribution grid and power plant operators in Swissgrid grid redevelopment training.

Energy efficiency: The Repower Group works to improve the efficiency of its own power plants, distribution grid and energy consumption, and offers energy efficiency services for its customers. The smart meter rollout is currently under way in Repower Switzerland’s supply area with the innovative SMARTPOWER measurement and control system from EVUlution AG, which emerged from a Repower unit. As of 2024, 22 per cent of the meters in the grid area are smart meters. These smart meters facilitate the energy transition by enabling customers to optimise their consumption behaviour via a digital customer portal. At the same time, the metering data obtained helps to better plan grid load and make grid expansion more efficient.

Repower Italia is helping actively promote electric transportation by developing products such as GIOTTO and SYMBIOSIS, which can be used to charge electric vehicles, and through membership of the Repower Charging Net. Repower Italia organises events dedicated to the topic of sustainable transport, produces and regularly runs a podcast on energy issues, and publishes an annual white paper on electric mobility.

Stakeholder engagement: When planning new projects or renovations that affect the environment or local infrastructure, Repower Switzerland involves the relevant stakeholders at an early stage. Stakeholder feedback is collected at information events in the regions and, where possible, actively incorporated into the development process.

Measuring effectiveness

Renewable energy in power generation

Repower Switzerland generates 100 per cent of its electricity from renewable resources. The share of renewables in Italy is 27.7 per cent. Across the group, 59.9 per cent of the electricity generated in 2024 came from renewables. In 2023 the figure was 48.4 per cent. Compared with the previous year, in 2024 a total of 59.2 per cent more renewable electricity was produced at hydropower facilities and 11.4 per cent more electricity by photovoltaic systems, while 6.2 per cent less electricity was generated at wind installations. The significant increase in hydropower generation in 2024 is due to the commissioning of Robbia power plant after its renovation in 2022 and 2023 as well as the good hydrological conditions.

Supply security: In 2024, the System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI: the average number of interruptions experienced by an end-consumer) for the Repower Switzerland distribution grid was 1.03. The System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI: average outage duration for each end-consumer served) for the Repower Switzerland distribution grid in 2024 was 46.8 min. This was significantly higher than previous years’ figures (32.4 min. in 2023). The high 2024 figure for SAIDI was due to a major malfunction on 24 December, which saw two power outages in large parts of the Surselva owing to extreme weather conditions and heavy snowfall.

Development of charging points for electric vehicles: In 2024, 1,250 new charging points for electric vehicles were sold in Italy. Repower Italia has thus created a network of around 7,100 charging points throughout Italy, an increase of 21 per cent over the previous year. In Switzerland, the Repower charging network grew by 55 per cent to 2,384 charging points in 2024.