The Swiss Federal Office of Energy is using calls for competitive tenders within the framework of the federal ProKilowatt programme to promote the efficient use of electricity. Alpiq was awarded a federal grant of CHF 1.1 million for its Optimo plus 2019 programme. Alpiq advises energy-intensive industrial companies during the development and evaluation of energy savings potential and supports them with the implementation of the associated measures. Such measures entail, for example, the upgrading of the lighting of production halls or the replacement of industrial hot-air dryers with systems that consume less electricity. With the Optimo plus 2019 programme, Alpiq is stimulating investments in electricity efficiency by industrial companies amounting to approximately CHF 4.5 million.
Within the framework of Optimo plus 2019, Alpiq will initiate 55,000 MWh of electricity savings by the end of 2022. With this programme, Alpiq is helping Switzerland to achieve the efficiency targets formulated in the Energy Strategy 2050. Already in 2014 and 2015, Alpiq was awarded federal funding grants for programs within the framework of ProKilowatt. The previous Optimo plus 2014 programme has now expired, while Optimo plus 2015 is still being implemented. Numerous analyses have shown that strategically oriented energy management can largely eliminate idle times and inefficient work processes in production environments. The analyses also revealed that there is usually additional untapped potential for improving energy efficiency and thus saving electricity.
Federal ProKilowatt incentive programme
The federal authorities use calls for competitive tenders as a tool to support projects and programmes that promote electricity efficiency and make a cost-effective contribution towards more economical electricity consumption in the industrial and services sectors as well as in private households. The grants are funded from a surcharge on the electricity grid and total up to CHF 50 million per year.
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