Serre Chevalier was one of the first ski areas in France to produce its own electricity since they started their renewable energy program in 2018.
The resort plans to generate 50% of its electricity requirements by 2025 and to reduce its carbon footprint by 50% by 2030.
There are three pillars to their plan:
Hydroelectricity
Two sites have been equipped with hydroelectric installations using artificial snow networks as an energy supplier.
Water is used from the Pont Baldy dam and the Schappe, Randon and Fontenil micro-power plants.
Photovoltaic
Over 600m2 of photovoltaic panels have already been installed in a dozen locations, with flexible panels designed by a local company, Sunwind Design.
Wind Turbine
The resort already has two horizontal axis wind turbines.
The resort also has a number of other projects to help improve their sustainability as a ski resort:
- a hybrid snow groomer is part of the ski area groomer park
- the Briançon Biomasse Énergie project created 80% of its heat from from renewable and local energy: biomass, preventing 6,000 tonnes of CO2 each year
- the resort’s ‘Organic’ swimming pool (pictured below) filters water from the Guisane river through a plant garden and natural rocks
- The ice rink’s compressors release heat which is immediately recycled to heat the pool water via plate heat exchangers. This saves 327 tonnes of CO2 emissions per annum
Further reading
This is a useful article from the Greener Energy Group with more information about renewables and how to get the most out of them.
