EPD - Axpo

SummaryCompanyAxpo AG, a wholly owned subsidiary of the AxpoHolding AG, is the leading Swiss electricityproducer. For more than 90 years, Axpo AG hasguaranteed a reliable supply of electricity. Hydro ­electric and nuclear power plants cover the baseload. Fluctuating demand and peak loads are balancedusing storage and pumped storage plants.Product and declared unitThe high head storage power plant on the Löntschis wholly owned by Axpo AG. Utilising head of 370 mand its 60 Megawatt (MW) installed capacity to producevaluable peak load energy, Löntsch PowerStation makes an important contribution to the electricityproduction requirements in North-EastSwitzerland.Verification of the results presentedThe complete material presented in this EPD ® hasbeen reviewed and certified by the accredited certificationbody Bureau Veritas Certification Sweden.Environmental impact of electricity generationin the Löntsch power plantThe Life-Cycle Assessmentt methodology has beenapplied to quantify the environmental impact. Itcomprises the full electricity generation process andall associated processes from “cradle to grave”.The main results of the Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA)are summarized in the table below. Further resultsincluding resource depletion and land usage as wellas information on biodiversity or hydrology are givenin the EPD.The declared product is 1 kilowatt hour (kWh) netelectricity generated by Löntsch power plant andthereafter distributed to a customer connected tothe Axpo AG network during the reference year2009/10 (1 October to 30 September).The International EPD ® SystemThe international EPD ® system managed by the InternationalEPD Cooperation (IEC) is a Type III environmentaldecla ra tion programme according to ISO14025. The relevant governing documents in hierarchicalorder are PCR-CPC 17, General Pro gramme Instructionsfor environmental product declaration(EPD), ISO 14025 and ISO 14044. Electricity belongsto the product category UNCPC Code 17, Group171 – Electrical energy.Environmental impact Unit 1 kWh net electricity atLöntsch power plant1 kWh net electricity atAxpo AG customerGreenhouse gases (100 years) g CO 2 -equivalents 4.68 (4.13 to 6.28) 4.90 (4.39 to 6.53)Ozone-depleting gases g CFC-11-equivalents 2.66 · 10 –7 (1.78 · 10 –7 to 4.63 · 10 –7 ) 2.75 · 10 –7 (1.83 · 10 –7 to 4.55 · 10 –7 )Formation of ground-level ozone g ethylene-equivalents 2.97 · 10 –3 (2.42 · 10 –3 to 4.24 · 10 –3 ) 3.09 · 10 –3 (2.54 · 10 –3 to 4.54 · 10 –3 )Acidifying substances g SO 2 -equivalents 1.80 · 10 –2 (1.53 · 10 –2 to 2.28 · 10 –2 ) 1.88 · 10 –2 (1.61 · 10 –2 to 2.34 · 10 –2 )Eutrophying substances g PO 43–-equivalents 4.58 · 10 –3 (1.85 · 10 –3 to 1.75 · 10 –2 ) 4.74 · 10 –3 (1.99 · 10 –3 to 1.84 · 10 –2 )Depletion of fossil resources MJ-equivalents 5.61 · 10 –2 (4.79 · 10 –2 to 7.07 · 10 –2 ) 5.85 · 10 –2 (5.07 · 10 –2 to 7.32 · 10 –2 )All results are rounded.