It could also be uncomfortable for Switzerland next winter if gas runs out. You have little choice but to hope that the EU can solve the supply problems.
View of a tunnel with a transit gas pipeline near Innertkirchen in the canton of Bern.
After the disturbing images from Bucha, the question of an embargo on Russian oil and gas has returned, and not just in the EU. In Swiss politics, too, the call to end dependence on Russian energy with immediate effect is getting louder and louder. According to the ranks of the SP and the Greens, Switzerland must finally take a stand. And that also means that Putin’s war should no longer be co-financed with energy purchases from Switzerland.
But exponents from the bourgeois camp are also demanding that Switzerland must now do its part to better protect the Ukrainian population from Russian atrocities. If the EU decides to stop importing Russian gas, Switzerland should follow suit, says FDP Vice President Andri Silberschmidt.
However, it is clear that not only Europe but also Switzerland would have to pay a price for this – and in the worst case there would also be a risk of rationing in Switzerland.
How dependent is Switzerland on natural gas?
If everything runs as usual, Switzerland covers 15 percent of its energy requirements with gas – half of which comes from Russia. Switzerland is thus one of the countries in Europe with a rather low consumption of natural gas. In Germany, for example, the dependency is almost twice as high. In this country, natural gas is used primarily for heating and cooking: in Switzerland, for example, a good 300,000 private households have gas heating. Gas is also used by industry and commerce. However, some of these companies could switch to heating oil in the event of a shortage of natural gas.
What is the current gas supply situation?
Switzerland obtains its gas via trading centers in the surrounding EU countries. These are currently sufficiently supplied with gas. There are also no signs of a shortage for the next few months. It could become critical next winter. The EU is working flat out to fill the gas storage tanks to 90 percent by October, which would ensure supplies for a few months. But if the supply of Russian gas were to be stopped, replenishing the storage facilities and especially the supply in the winter months would be a difficult undertaking, since around 40 percent of the gas consumed in Europe comes from Russia.
How long do the reserves in Switzerland last?
Switzerland does not have its own gas storage facilities in Switzerland and is therefore heavily dependent on the availability of gas abroad. An underground gas storage facility in Étrez near Lyon, in which the French-speaking Swiss company Gaznat has a stake, ensures a certain security of supply. An agreement between Switzerland and France ensures that customers from Switzerland are supplied with gas even in the event of bottlenecks.
However, the storage capacity in Étrez only covers around 5 percent of annual Swiss consumption. The storage depots with heating oil in Switzerland continue to provide a certain degree of security. If there is a gas shortage, companies can tap into it if they have secondary fuel plants that run on both gas and oil. This would save 20 percent of demand for a few months.
Is there a risk that the EU will exclude Switzerland from supplying gas if it becomes scarce?
That’s unlikely. Switzerland benefits from the fact that an important transit line between Italy and Germany runs through its territory. It is therefore able to source gas from both Italy and Germany. In view of the strategically important position in the European gas supply, the EU is unlikely to come up with a solution that does not involve Switzerland. In addition, Switzerland can also obtain gas via entry points in France.
How can Switzerland replace energy supplies from Russia in the short term?
Swiss energy suppliers are currently working feverishly to procure enough gas for next winter. The focus is on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the USA, Qatar or Egypt and securing additional storage capacities abroad. In order to facilitate this project, the Federal Council has relaxed antitrust law so that Swiss suppliers abroad can organize procurement together on a large scale. The option of shipping liquid gas via the Rhine is also being examined. However, the construction of an unloading station and a storage facility in the Basel area is still in the planning phase.
With Simonetta Sommaruga and Ueli Maurer, two federal councilors abroad recently campaigned for Switzerland to have access to liquid gas. Sommaruga campaigned in the Netherlands for Switzerland to be able to use the LNG terminals and storage capacities at the ports. Meanwhile, Ueli Maurer traveled to Qatar. The desert state is currently being courted heavily because it is the largest exporter of liquid gas. But whether the talks will lead to quantifiable results is very uncertain.
Ultimately, Switzerland has no choice but to hope that the EU will be able to procure enough gas. If Europe manages to secure the supply, it will benefit as a small consumer, who accounts for just 1 percent of total European gas consumption. If there is a bottleneck in Europe, she will not be spared either.
What happens if the gas threatens to run out in Switzerland?
In the event that there is a shortage of gas, the Federal Office for National Economic Supply (BWL) has a phased plan. In the first stage, the federal government limits itself to encouraging consumers to save electricity with appeals. At the same time, the federal government can require companies with dual-fuel systems to switch from gas to heating oil.
If this is not enough, the second stage comes into play. Then the federal government decreed quotas for large gas consumers who cannot switch to heating oil, or even that their systems would have to be shut down. If there is still no gas then, in the third stage, private households must also limit their gas consumption; the heating in the apartments and houses could then no longer run continuously.
Could the gas shortage also lead to an electricity shortage?
According to the electricity regulator Elcom, this danger exists. France and Germany need gas-fired power plants to cover peak electricity loads. And Italy is also very dependent on gas. If gas becomes scarce and there is a chain of unfortunate incidents at the same time – such as the unplanned failure of several nuclear power plants in France and a dark doldrums without wind and electricity in Germany – it could happen that Switzerland cannot import enough electricity from abroad. The Federal Council therefore wants to introduce a hydropower reserve for next winter. In the event of a shortage, domestic electricity requirements could be covered with it for at least a few days.