We would like to extend a warm thank you to all speakers, moderators and participants for their contributions to the SELA Annual Meeting 2025, held on 27 November at the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) in Lugano. The event, jointly organised by SELA, USI and the La Suisse en Europe Association (ASE), focused on “The EU–CH Electricity Agreement: Implications for Switzerland.”
Through a dialogue among lawyers, academics and technical experts, the meeting unpacked the key legal, institutional and operational questions raised by the prospective implementation of the Agreement, set against the broader evolution of EU-Swiss relations. Opening remarks by Prof Dr Thomas Cottier and Prof Dr Ilaria Espa highlighted why electricity has become central to wider debates on sovereignty, interdependence, security of supply and market design, and why SELA remains a key forum for open stakeholder exchange. EFELA’s Secretary General, Adv Marinella De Focatiis, also stressed the value of anchoring the Swiss discussion within the wider EFELA network.
The first panel situated the Agreement in the European context and clarified core issues of market integration, dynamic alignment and practical misunderstandings, including the implications for cross-border capacity, market coupling, crisis coordination, and the contours of state-aid and dispute-settlement discussions. It was confirmed that the Agreement respects cantonal water rights and does not require EU-wide tenders for future concessions.
The second panel moved to system operations, reserves and contracts: speakers discussed how renewables are reshaping grid management, why predictable transmission capacity matters, how winter reserves may evolve under a more integrated framework, and what the Agreement could mean for Swiss PPAs and risk allocation.
The final panel focused on liberalisation, trading and commercial operations, addressing consumer protection, utility transformation (including risk management and IT systems), and the compliance implications of REMIT-like transparency and market integrity rules for Swiss-based trading activity.
Overall, the discussions did not aim to produce a single “SELA view”, but to clarify the main questions Switzerland will face if the Agreement enters into force. Several contributions pointed to benefits for security of supply, grid stability and investment. At the same time, speakers underlined that a structured framework would require coherent domestic choices. One conclusion was clear: without an agreement, securing stable supplies, especially in winter, is likely to remain difficult and costlier, and cross-border trading from Switzerland more constrained.
Materials:
Brauchli_Generation, Supply and Transmission of Electricity
Heselhaus_Thoma_Presentation_SH_ST_final
Hachem_20251127 Energy Law Conference Lugano
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