Annual report 2008/09 - Axpo Group

The balance group concept was introduced
in Switzerland when the fi rst
phase of the market liberalization entered
into force on 1 January 2009.
Axpo AG decided to assign all its supply
areas to a single balance group.
Currently, approximately one-third of
the traditional electricity supplied in
Switzerland is processed through the
Axpo AG balance group, and more
than half of all Swiss electricity suppliers
belong to this balance group.
Axpo AG has been successfully
participating in the Swiss balancing
energy market since 1 January 2009.
Thanks to its diversifi ed production
fleet, Axpo AG is well-positioned to
provide system services.
Axpo Vertrieb AG has been
successfully marketing “Axpo Naturstrom”
(natural electricity) for nine
years. In the year under review, approximately
14 000 households and 29 corporate
customers have drawn almost
100 million kWh of electricity from
renewable energies, thus repeating the
good result of the previous year. More
than 80 producers generate this natural
electricity in photovoltaic, biomass,
small-scale hydropower and run-of-
river power plants that do not receive
any cost-covering remuneration for
feed-in to the electricity grid. The customers,
however, not only promote
the use of electricity from renewable
sources, but also contribute one cent
per kilowatt-hour of electricity used to
Axpo’s green electricity fund (“Axpo
Naturstrom Fonds”). This is the only
fund of its kind in Switzerland and
supports technologies for generating
electricity from renewable energies
and improving energy effi ciency. This
year the fund supported four projects,
and a total of 30 projects have been
funded since the fi rst contributions were
paid out.
Key fi gures for Axpo AG Group
Electricity sales in million kWh 28 959
Revenues in CHF million 2 703
EBIT in CHF million 385
Net profi t in CHF million 315
Number of employees* 1 620
* Average number of employees as of 30 September 2009 (expressed as full-time equivalents)
Development of hydropower
production
Axpo AG’s hydropower production was slightly
higher in 2008/09 than in the previous year and
well above the long-term average.
Development of hydropower procurement,
in million kWh
4837
5802
5753
6134
6207
0 3500 5699
2004/05
2005/06
2006/07
2007/08
2008/09
Arithmetic average
7000
In the past fi nancial year, Axpo Suisse
AG was involved in a successful new
business transaction. It concluded an
agreement with the Coop retail group
for the provision and coordination
of various electricity-related services.
This collaboration will be ex pan d ed
in the coming years.
Hydropower division
With the exception of September, hydropower
production was slightly above
average for the entire past fi nancial
year. Storage power plants with southern
catchment areas benefi ted from the
high rainfall south of the Alps, while
Hydropower production
in Switzerland
With a share of total production of 17%, Axpo
AG is one of the largest producers of hydropower
in Switzerland.
Share of hydropower procurement
17 %
83 %
Hydropower procurement Axpo AG
Hydropower procurement other companies
Axpo AG restructured its
Trading & Sales division
to take account of the increasing
complexity of
the liberalized electricity
market. All Axpo AG’s
traditional electricity is
allocated to a single
balance group.