Valais, Switzerland
10/2018
The Nant de Drance power plant is one of the most powerful pumped storage plants in Europe. Construction started in 2008 and is scheduled to be fully operational in 2021. It’s a high-altitude, large-scale project, with 17 km of tunnels, 1.7 million m3 of rock excavated, up to 400 workers on site, and an investment of more than CHF 2 billion. The power station is located 600 metres underground, between the Emosson and Vieux Emosson reservoirs, and will be able to generate close to 2.5 billion KWh a year. The plant will be used to stabilise the electricity grid throughout Europe and is safeguarding Switzerland’s power supply.
