SWITZERLAND —Swissgrid has appointed AFRY to provide multidisciplinary engineering services for three substations and related infrastructure along Switzerland’s Innertkirchen-Ulrichen electricity transmission corridor. The assignment covers a new substation at Oberwald, upgrades to existing facilities at Innertkirchen and Handeck, and supporting civil and building works.
The project involves renewing a 27-kilometre transmission line that has been in service for more than six decades. The infrastructure will be prepared for a potential increase in operating voltage from 220 kV to 380 kV, while approximately 23 kilometres of the section between Innertkirchen and Oberwald are planned as underground cable connections. The scope also includes a microtunnel linked to the cable transition structure serving the Oberwald substation.
The works address infrastructure requirements associated with future electricity demand and the movement of power generated in southern Switzerland to other parts of the country. Increasing transmission capacity can help relieve network constraints and improve the ability of the grid to accommodate changing electricity flows, including those associated with renewable generation. The use of underground cables on much of the route also makes the cable transition infrastructure a significant component of project delivery.
For Switzerland’s power sector, the assignment is relevant to transmission system reliability, grid modernisation and the integration of electricity from different regions. Utilities and grid operators face growing requirements to renew ageing assets while preparing networks for higher loads and evolving generation patterns. Engineering, construction and specialist infrastructure providers may benefit from continued investment in substations, high-voltage equipment, underground cabling and associated civil works.
The project will use Building Information Modelling (BIM), aligning with Swissgrid’s objective of making the methodology standard across grid projects by 2027. BIM-based delivery can support coordination between engineering disciplines and the management of complex infrastructure information, although no project cost, completion date or quantified capacity increase has been disclosed in the provided details.
AFRY is an engineering and consulting company serving infrastructure, energy and industrial markets. Swissgrid operates Switzerland’s extra-high-voltage transmission network and is responsible for transporting electricity across the national grid. The contract brings engineering services together with a broader transmission renewal programme, but the available announcement does not specify the contract value or establish a construction completion schedule.
