Alpiq is an electric power production and distribution utility with headquarters in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. It operates mainly in Switzerland, but it also has power stations in Italy, France, Norway, Hungary and the Czech Republic and building new ones in Germany, Italy, France, Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

 and the Czech Republic. The group was established in 2009 in Neuchâtel, Switzerland after the merger of two Swiss energy companies Aare-Tessin Ltd. for Electricity (Atel) and Energie Ouest Suisse (EOS).

History

Alpiq was founded in 2009 as a result of the merger of Swiss energy companies Atel and EOS. Atel (Aare-Tessin Ltd. for Electricity) was founded in 1894 and was active in Europe in the production, trading and sale of electricity

Electricity

Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...

. EOS (Energie Ouest Suisse) was founded in 1919 by several electricity companies based in Western Switzerland. The company was specialised in producing electric power from hydroelectric sources and owned many stations in the country. It also had a 1000 kilometres (621.4 mi) energy distribution network in the same area.

Activity

Alpiq is specialised in the production, distribution and trading of electric power. The company owns around 6,322 MW in hydroelectric, thermal

Thermal

A thermal column is a column of rising air in the lower altitudes of the Earth's atmosphere. Thermals are created by the uneven heating of the Earth's surface from solar radiation, and are an example of convection. The sun warms the ground, which in turn warms the air directly above it...

, wind

Wind

Wind is the flow of gases on a large scale. On Earth, wind consists of the bulk movement of air. In outer space, solar wind is the movement of gases or charged particles from the sun through space, while planetary wind is the outgassing of light chemical elements from a planet's atmosphere into space...

 and solar power stations. Alpiq has stakes in 2,963 MW of hydroelectric power stations, 3,250 MW of thermal power station

Thermal power station

A thermal power station is a power plant in which the prime mover is steam driven. Water is heated, turns into steam and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator. After it passes through the turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and recycled to where it was heated; this...

s and 109 MW in small hydroelectric power stations, wind farm

Wind farm

A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...

s and solar power stations.

Hydroelectric power stations

The company partially or fully owns around 2,963 MW of hydroelectric power station in Switzerland and Italy. The largest hydroelectric power station fully owned by Alpiq is the Lucendro hydroelectric power station located in Switzerland that has an installed capacity of 60 MW. The company also owns a 60% stake in the Grande Dixence SA, company that manages the Grande Dixence Dam

Grande Dixence Dam

The Grande Dixence Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Dixence River at the head of the Val d'Hérens in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. At high, it is the tallest gravity dam in the world and is part of the Cleuson-Dixence Complex...

.

Rank	Name	Type	Country	Capacity (MW)	Annual production (million kWh)	Stake (%)	Note
1	Flumenthal Flumenthal dam The Flumenthal Dam is a regulating dam at Flumenthal, Switzerland, which was erected as the most important element of all the works of the Second Jura water correction. It was built to regulate the outflow of Seeland's three-lake hydrologic system as far downstream as Solothurn and the confluence...	run-of-river Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation whereby a considerably smaller water storage called pondage or none is used to supply a power station. Run-of-the-river power plants are classified as with or without pondage...	Switzerland	23.7	146	100
2	Gösgen	run-of-river Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation whereby a considerably smaller water storage called pondage or none is used to supply a power station. Run-of-the-river power plants are classified as with or without pondage...	Switzerland	51.3	300	100
3	Klingnau Klingnau Klingnau is a municipality in the district of Zurzach in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-History:Klingnau is first mentioned in 1239 as Chlingenowe. Ulrich of Klingen acquired land from the monastery of St. Blaise in 1239 to found the city. He and the abbot reached an agreement over which of...	run-of-river Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation whereby a considerably smaller water storage called pondage or none is used to supply a power station. Run-of-the-river power plants are classified as with or without pondage...	Switzerland	37	230	10
4	Ruppoldingen	run-of-river Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation whereby a considerably smaller water storage called pondage or none is used to supply a power station. Run-of-the-river power plants are classified as with or without pondage...	Switzerland	21.1	115	100
5	Ryburg-Schwörstadt	run-of-river Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation whereby a considerably smaller water storage called pondage or none is used to supply a power station. Run-of-the-river power plants are classified as with or without pondage...	Switzerland	110	760	25
6	Blenio Blenio Blenio is a municipality of the district of Blenio, in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland.Blenio was created on 22 October 2006 when it incorporated the formerly autonomous municipalities of Aquila, Campo Blenio, Ghirone, Olivone and Torre of the upper Blenio valley.A legal challenge to the merger...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	400	890	17
7	Chandoline	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	120	320	10.9
8	Cleuson-Dixence	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	1,269	?	32
8	Emosson	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	360	840	50
9	Engadine Engadine Engadine may refer to the following places:*Engadin, a valley in Graubünden, Switzerland*Engadine, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia*Engadine, Michigan, a small town in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	414	1,330	22
10	Conches Conches Conches may refer to:the plural of the Conch, a type of mollusk.Places:*Conches-sur-Gondoire, a village in the northern part of France*Conches-en-Ouche, another village in the northern part of France...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	119	280	41
11	Fully Fully Fully is a municipality in the district of Martigny in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-Geography:Fully has an area, , of . Of this area, 30.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while 27.7% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 5.7% is settled and 36.2% is unproductive land.It is on the...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	6	12	28
12	Martigny-Bourg	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	21	90	18
13	Gd-St-Bernard	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	40	96	25
14	Hongrin-Léman	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	240	530	39.3
15	Gougra	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	159	575	65
16	Grande Dixence Grande Dixence Grande Dixence S.A. is a Société Anonyme operating in Switzerland which runs the Bieudron Hydro Project and the Grande Dixence Dam in the Val d'Hérens, Valais...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	680	2,000	60
17	Hinterrhein Hinterrhein Hinterrhein can refer to:* Hinterrhein , a tributary of the Rhine* Hinterrhein, Switzerland, a municipality* Hinterrhein , the district including that Swiss municipality...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	741	1,460	9.3
18	Lucendro	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	60	104	100
19	Maggia Maggia Maggia may refer to:*Maggia River, a river in southern Switzerland*Maggia, Ticino, a municipality in southern Switzerland*Maggia , a fictional crime syndicate in the Marvel Comics universe...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	626	1,475	12.5
20	Massa Massa Massa is a town and comune in Tuscany, central Italy, the administrative centre of the province of Massa-Carrara. It is located in the Frigido River Valley, near the Alpi Apuane, some 5 kilometers from the Tyrrhenian Sea....	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	340	545	34.5
21	Mese Mese Mese may refer to:*Mese, Burma, a town in Kayah State of eastern Myanmar*Mese, Lombardy, a comune in the province of Sondrio, Italy* Mese, the Hungarian name for Meşendorf village, Buneşti Commune, Braşov County, Romania...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Italy	377	1,128	20
22	Salanfe	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	60	120	100
23	Simplon Simplon Simplon is the name of a region in the Alps. It can refer specifically to:* Simplon Pass and Tunnel* Simplon , a former French département corresponding with modern Valais, Switzerland* Simplon, Valais, a Swiss municipality...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	62	240	80
24	Tusciano Tusciano - Course :The source is between Monte Polveracchio and Monte Cervialto, in the Monti Picentini range of the southern Apennines. It passes through the territories of...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Italy	96	313	20
25	Udine Udine Udine is a city and comune in northeastern Italy, in the middle of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic sea and the Alps , less than 40 km from the Slovenian border. Its population was 99,439 in 2009, and that of its urban area was 175,000.- History :Udine is the historical...	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Italy	309	1,161	20
26	Zervreila	conventional Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...	Switzerland	268	560	30

Thermal power stations

The company partially or fully owns around 3,250 MW of thermal power stations in Switzerland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Spain and the Czech Republic. The largest thermal power station fully owned by Alpiq is the Plana del Vent thermal power station located in Spain that has an installed capacity of 800 MW.

Rank	Name	Type	Country	Capacity (MW)	Annual production (million kWh)	Stake (%)	Note
1	Brindisi Brindisi Brindisi is a city in the Apulia region of Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, off the coast of the Adriatic Sea.Historically, the city has played an important role in commerce and culture, due to its position on the Italian Peninsula and its natural port on the Adriatic Sea. The city...	fossil fuel	Italy	640	1,528	20
2	Gösgen Kladno District The Kladno District is a district within the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic...	fossil fuel	Czech Republic	388	1,500	100
3	San Filippo del Mela San Filippo del Mela San Filippo del Mela is a comune in the Province of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 25 km west of Messina...	fossil fuel	Italy	1,280	4,009	20
4	Zlín Zlín Zlín , from 1949 to 1989 Gottwaldov , is a city in the Zlín Region, southeastern Moravia, Czech Republic, on the Dřevnice River. The development of the modern city is closely connected to the Bata Shoes company...	fossil fuel	Czech Republic	66	176	100
5	Biella Biella Biella is a town and comune in the northern Italian region of Piemonte, the capital of the province of the same name, with some 45,800 inhabitants as of 2009. It is located about 80 km northeast of Turin and about 80 km west-northwest of Milan.It lies in the foothills of the Alps,...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	20	180	60
6	Chivasso Chivasso Chivasso is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 20 km northeast of Turin. Chivasso has a population of about 25,000...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	1,140	3,001	20
7	Csepel Csepel Csepel is the 21st district and a neighbourhood in Budapest, Hungary. Csepel officially became part of Budapest on 1 January 1950.- Location :...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Hungary	403	2,130	100
8	Kladno II Kladno Kladno is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It is located 25 km northwest of Prague. Kladno is the largest city of the region and holds a population together with its adjacent suburban areas of more than 110,000 people...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Czech Republic	45	?	100
9	Monthey Monthey Monthey is the capital of the district of Monthey in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.- History :The castle in the town center was built in 950 on a hill, the first houses of Monthey surrounded it. Monthey is first mentioned in 1215 as Montez At the 13th century, the counts of Savoy owned the...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Switzerland	55	456	100
10	Novel Novel A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	100	597	51
11	Piacenza Piacenza Piacenza is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	860	2,593	20
12	Plana del Vent	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Spain	800	?	100
13	Sermide Sermide Sermide is a comune in the Province of Mantua in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 180 km southeast of Milan and about 45 km southeast of Mantua. In 31 December 2004, it had a population of 6,533 and an area of 56.9 km².The small village of Sermide contains the frazioni : S...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	1,140	2,667	20
14	Spreetal Spreetal Spreetal is a municipality in the district of Bautzen, in Saxony, Germany....	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Germany	56	?	100
15	Turbigo Turbigo Turbigo is a comune in the Province of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 35 km west of Milan, along the Naviglio Grande canal. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 7,486 and an area of 8.5 km²....	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	1,740	2,466	20
16	Vercelli Vercelli Vercelli is a city and comune of about 47,000 inhabitants in the Province of Vercelli, Piedmont, northern Italy. One of the oldest urban sites in northern Italy, it was founded, according to most historians, around the year 600 BC.The city is situated on the river Sesia in the plain of the river...	combined cycle Combined cycle In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy, which in turn usually drives electrical generators...	Italy	50	116	95
17	Gösgen	nuclear power Nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...	Switzerland	970	7,964	40
18	Leibstadt Leibstadt Nuclear Power Plant The Nuclear power station Leibstadt, abbreviated KKL, is in the municipality Leibstadt on the Rhine River close of the Aare delta and the German border...	nuclear power Nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...	Switzerland	1,165	9,385	32.4

Other power stations

Alpiq partially or fully owns around 109 MW of small hydropower stations, wind farms and solar power stations in Switzerland, Italy, Norway and Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

. The company owns stakes in 11 small hydropower stations in Switzerland, Italy and Norway with a combined electric power generation capacity of 20.63 MW and an annual power generation of 72.17 GWh. The company owns stakes in five wind farm

Wind farm

A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...

s located in Switzerland and Italy with a combined electric power generation capacity of 178 MW and an annual power generation of 346 GWh. Alpiq is also involved in the construction of another two wind farms in Italy and Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

 with a combined capacity of 90 MW.

The company is also involved in the construction of the Narbone Serre solar park located near Agrigento

Agrigento

Agrigento , is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy, and capital of the province of Agrigento. It is renowned as the site of the ancient Greek city of Akragas , one of the leading cities of Magna Graecia during the golden...

 in Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

, Italy. The power station will use thin-film solar cells. The solar cells will have a combined capacity of 14 MW. The first section of the solar farm will go operational in 2010, generating 6.5 MW. The second section rated at 7.5 MW is still at the approvals phase.

Electricity trading

Alpiq has trading branches in 16 countries in Europe. In 2008 the company bought two leading Romanian

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

 electricity trading companies Buzmann Industries and Ehol Distribution, both companies based in Bucharest

Bucharest

Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....

. In 2010 Alpiq became the largest open market electric power trader in Romania

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

 surpassing Alro Slatina

Alro Slatina

Alro SA , established in 1963, is one of the biggest aluminium companies in Romania and in Europe. It started operation in 1965. Alro's primary aluminium facilities are located in Slatina and currently comprise a smelter and processing facilities, including a cast house, hot and cold rolling mills...

and having a 16% market share.