The Swiss Energy Sector: Urban Utility Companies and Transition Trends

In course

Description

This lecture explores the role of urban utility companies in the Swiss energy sector, focusing on the challenges and opportunities they face in the energy transition. It discusses the key trends of digitalization, decarbonization, and liberalization, as well as the dilemma between public and private interests. The presentation delves into the various roles of urban utility companies, including their involvement in regulations, public services, production, distribution, and supply. It also examines the tensions between public and private logic, the reality of urban utility companies in the energy transition, and the current challenges faced by Swiss energy companies. The lecture concludes with a discussion on different energy solutions and their implications for the future of the Swiss energy sector.

Instructors (3)

Official source

https://mediaspace.epfl.ch/media/0_4735dhrb

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Related concepts (25)

Energy policy of the United Kingdom

The energy policy of the United Kingdom refers to the United Kingdom's efforts towards reducing energy intensity, reducing energy poverty, and maintaining energy supply reliability. The United Kingdom has had success in this, though energy intensity remains high. There is an ambitious goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in future years, but it is unclear whether the programmes in place are sufficient to achieve this objective.

Energy transition

An energy transition (or energy system transformation) is a significant structural change in an energy system regarding supply and consumption. Currently, a transition to sustainable energy (mostly renewable energy) is underway to limit climate change. It is also called renewable energy transition. The current transition is driven by a recognition that global greenhouse-gas emissions must be drastically reduced. This process involves phasing-down fossil fuels and re-developing whole systems to operate on low carbon electricity.

Climate change mitigation

Climate change mitigation is action to limit climate change by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases or removing those gases from the atmosphere. The recent rise in global average temperature is mostly due to emissions from burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas. Mitigation can reduce emissions by transitioning to sustainable energy sources, conserving energy, and increasing efficiency. It is possible to remove carbon dioxide () from the atmosphere by enlarging forests, restoring wetlands and using other natural and technical processes.

Renewable energy

Renewable energy is energy from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. Renewable resources include sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy sources are sustainable, some are not. For example, some biomass sources are considered unsustainable at current rates of exploitation. Renewable energy is often used for electricity generation, heating and cooling.

Energy poverty

Energy poverty is lack of access to modern energy services. It refers to the situation of large numbers of people in developing countries and some people in developed countries whose well-being is negatively affected by very low consumption of energy, use of dirty or polluting fuels, and excessive time spent collecting fuel to meet basic needs. Today, 759 million people lack access to consistent electricity and 2.6 billion people use dangerous and inefficient cooking systems.