Switzerland bolted 5,000 solar panels onto a dam wall 8,000 feet up in the freezing Alps. The plant now makes three times more winter power than any farm down in the valleys

I would imagine that you could set up some sort of insulated battery and/or capacitor setup that could be used to melt off any accumulated snow and ice once a storm passes with some heating elements embedded in the photovoltaics. Though, that probably introduces the issue of falling frozen debris striking panels lower down on the dam. Nonetheless, given the efficiency gains, it’s probably a problem worth solving - especially since this Swiss proof-of-concept seems to be working out so well.

if you look at the picture in the article, you can see they’re not angled up very far. They’re actually almost vertical.

I'd imagine that goats can walk on solar panels too.

Good shout.

Here is an older article on the start of construction from a publicly funded news organization:

https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/archive-alpine-environment/construction-starts-on-first-large-scale-solar-park-in-swiss-alps/87531886

Here is the article from when it was done (September 2022!), but this one isn't available in English I'm afraid:

https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/groesste-alpine-solaranlage-der-schweiz-hat-volle-leistung-erreicht/47868356

As a primary source, here's the project page of one of the involved companies:

https://www.axpo.com/ch/en/energy/generation-and-distribution/solar-power/alpinsolar.html

It doesn't really answer your question, but this article calls the Muttsee the highest reservoir in Europe, at least that's something.

https://www.waterpowermagazine.com/news/muttsee-dam-solar-plant-to-provide-balancing-energy-for-swissgrid/

I'm 100% sure the dam wall is not North-facing.

Mind you, this a great idea for a Dam facing the right way (ideally South).

Lies!

Donald's adult diapers stop his PP from reaching his pants.

Those are the lies

I mean even if it's not south facing, im sure some production is still better than no production (to a certain point, obv there needs to be some multiple of ROI to make sense)

Isn't it just the same heat energy that would have been beating down on the environment otherwise (plus some sort of reduction since the panels are converting some of it to power)

Without even damaging them....

The article is written in a very terse style, but it does mention the dam happens to be (a) south facing, and (b) above the fog line, so it can produce in the winter when fog covers the lowlands. It also mentions that there is a bit of an albedo affect -- the snow reflects some of the sun back up to the panels.

Facts!! 🙌

It can build up overnight though, so I think the question remains valid.

someone bolted thousands of solar panels to a place almost no one thought was worth it.

"Someone"

2026 journalism