Today, the European interconnected grid guarantees a secure supply of electricity for over 30 countries and over 530 million consumers. The exchange of electricity enables power shortages in individual countries to be overcome and overloading to be avoided. Thanks to this international cooperation, it is also possible to compensate for power plant failures or overproduction. This benefits grid security and, ultimately, every single consumer.
The interconnected grid is geared to the topography and the energy availability in the individual regions. This includes, for example, wind energy from the North Sea, Spain and Portugal, as well as solar energy from Southern Europe and North Africa. The Swiss electricity grid, a key element of the European interconnected grid, links the north of Europe with the south across the Alps. At the same time, the Alps act as an important energy storage facility for the whole of Europe, with large quantities of energy being stored in Switzerland’s reservoirs and drawn upon when needed.