Hydraulic energy – In Valais, it’s a blue gold rush

– In Valais, it’s a blue gold rush

Against the backdrop of the energy crisis, dams are becoming gold mines. Tomorrow, the Canton will have their hands on it, but the tensions are not lacking.

Posted today at 10:01 a.m.

The Grande-Dixence, symbol of Swiss dams, will return to municipal hands in 2045.

Switzerland Tourism/François Perraudin

In about thirty years, the Valais will be a veritable baron of energy in Switzerland. A position far from being anecdotal as fears of electricity shortages and the effects of global warming are intensifying day by day. What will change? Ownership of dams, today in the hands of large industrial groups such as Alpiq, Axpo or BKW, whose shareholders are located in the towns of Lake Geneva and on the Swiss plateau.

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By 2055, most of these dams (at least 60%) will come under the control of the Valais municipalities and the canton. And this because of the expiry of the hydraulic concessions (read box). The negotiations began with an expected peak within ten years, but the stakes are colossal. And when prices make you dizzy, friction is never far away.