Axpo has been named as part of a consortium that will carry out in-depth investigations on a potential new hydropower plant above the Fellbach waterfall in Saas-Balen, Switzerland. Axpo will handle project implementation.
The plans by Kraftwerke Mattmark AG (KWM) call for the development of a 4.6MW independent hydroelectric plant above the waterfall in Saas-Balen in the canton of Wallis. The approx €14M project could begin in 2018 at the earliest, with operations expected towards the end of 2019 or the beginning of 2020.
Renewal of the water rights concession by the municipality of Saas-Balen is a prerequisite for the project, and Axpo says that a concession application is likely to be submitted by the end of 2015. In the case of a positive decision by the town, the application will then go to the canton of Wallis for review.
The concessionary municipalities (among others Saas-Balen) have awarded KWM the rights to hydropower utilisation up until the year 2045.
