EPEX SPOT celebrates 15 years of Swissix

6 December 2021. Today the European Power Exchange EPEX SPOT celebrates 15 years since the launch of the Swiss Day-Ahead auction. The first auction took place on 5 December 2006 for delivery on 6 December 2006.

This market-launch also set the electricity price benchmark for Switzerland, the Day-Ahead Index Swissix.

With the liberalisation of the electricity sector at the end of the 1990’s, Power Exchanges became key actors organising free markets in their respective countries, bundling supply and demand and determining reliable price signals for wholesale electricity markets across Europe. Swissix refers to the Swiss Electricity Price Index and is calculated and published daily as Swissix Base (24 hours of the next day) and Swissix Peak (from 8AM to 8 PM of the next day).

In 2020, market participants on all segments of the Swiss market traded a combined volume of 26.7 TWh. This represents 43% of the national power consumption in 2020. “The Swiss market is an important one for EPEX SPOT, and 30 companies from Switzerland are active across all our European markets” says Davide Orifici, Director Public & Regulatory Affairs and Head of Swiss Office of EPEX SPOT. Although recent political developments have not been promising. market participants remain hopeful that the Swiss power market can be further integrated into the pan-European Market Coupling. “The achievements and the benefits of the European Union Internal Energy Market – and to a certain extent, grid stability and security of supply – are put at risk by the missing electricity agreement between the EU and Switzerland. Achievement of climate neutrality is a declared goal of both the EU and Switzerland. EPEX SPOT therefore would welcome a new prioritisation of the electricity agreement by all involved stakeholders. This would be beneficial for both Swiss and European end-consumers” adds Mr. Orifici.