Government sticks to plans to open electricity market 

The Swiss government says it is keeping to its plans to completely liberalise the domestic electricity market, despite criticism.

It has mandated energy minister Simonetta Sommaruga to come up with the necessary accompanying measures and consider how the energy law should be changed. This will be presented in the first four months of 2020.

Under the proposal, everyone in Switzerland would have a right to choose their electricity supplier freely. Since 2009, big power consumers have been able to choose their supplier, but not smaller companies or households.

This was supposed to have happened in a second stage, but the Swiss government delayed it in 2016 following criticism. It is now hoping that a second attempt will be successful, having put out its latest plans for consultation among interested parties.

In a statement on Friday, the government said most of those consulted wanted the market to be opened. But there were also calls for accompanying measures to guarantee supply and to ensure that Swiss companies were not disadvantaged.

Criticism had come from the political left and Swisscleantech that there were no measures to ensure the government’s energy strategy 2050 goals would be reached.

Sommaruga’s department will therefore prepare a package of accompanying measures totalling CHF215 million a year. This will include encouraging the use of domestic green energy.