UPDATE (27 September):
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Contrary to some alarmist articles (aka ‘clickbait’) you may have recently read, the energy crisis may not affect ski resorts this winter as severely as threatened.
The increasing price of energy is forcing both households and businesses alike to take measures to prevent their expenses spiralling out of control during the winter months.
However, some of the recent hyperbole needs to be redressed.
In this blog post, we look at some of the claims that have been made about how your ski holidays will be affected in the 2022/23 season.
Power cuts will NOT stop the lifts running
According to Jean-Luc Boch, the mayor of La Plagne and president of the National Association of Mayors of Ski Resorts, this will not be the case.
“Non, on n’en est pas du tout là!” said Boch earlier this week. Non-French speakers should understand he doesn’t think it will happen.
”There will be no power cuts,” said Boch definitively. He noted that peak demand comes between 6pm and 7pm, by which time the lifts have been long closed. However, he has warned that “there will be no night skiing for some resorts.”
Dominique Thillaud, directeur général of Compagnie des Alpes said in December 2022 that he was not worried about power cuts this winter. (“Ne craint pas non plus les coupures de courant cet hiver.”)
Lift pass prices MAY go up
There’s no doubt that the huge increase in the cost of electricity will affect resort budgets.
Alexandre Maulin, president of Domaines Skiables de France, has observed that while previously as little as 3% of the lift pass price was taken up by electricity costs, that “could increase to 8%, 10% or even 15%”. Compagnie des Alpes have reported that the cost of electricity will more than double this winter.
However, in Switzerland, Laurent Vaucher from Téléverbier, the Verbier lift company, has confirmed that “no price increase is expected for this season”. He did not rule out price increases in the future, if energy prices continue to surge.
Lifts are LIKELY to run more slowly
Firstly, it’s hard to see how this would be an issue for most skiers or snowboarders.
Olivier Simonin, general manager of the lift company in Val d’Isère has pointed out that changing the speed of a lift from six metres/second to five metres/second is “almost imperceptible for the customer.“
Secondly, running lifts more slowly has been part of many resorts’ sustainability strategy for several years already. When there are no queues and the load on lifts is minimal, resorts like Les Arcs have chosen to slow down lifts to save on power use. This is a sensible, carbon efficient way of running a ski resort.
What we are likely to see this winter, according to Vaucher, is fewer lights left permanently on and a reduction in “extraneous energy” use such as auxiliary heaters, escalators or elevators.
Snow cannons will NOT be turned off
It’s highly unlikely that snow cannons will be forced to turn off completely.
Simonin believes that the cannons may be turned on earlier than usual: “We will try to schedule artificial snow production for the pre-season as much as possible, so the power use doesn’t coincide with the operation of the lifts.”
The importance of tourism to ski resorts will also be significant in decision making. “Getting rid of snow cannons carries a lot of risk for ski areas. We know that CHF1 spent on a lift ticket brings in CHF6 in the region,” said Laurent Vaucher from Téléverbier.
Further Reading
https://www.francebleu.fr/infos/societe/face-au-risque-de-penurie-d-energie-les-stations-de-ski-reflechissent-a-reduire-leur-consommation-1661440760
https://www.rts.ch/info/suisse/13315159-les-remontees-mecaniques-pourraient-devoir-reduire-leur-offre-lhiver-prochain.html
https://www.francebleu.fr/infos/economie-social/il-n-y-aura-pas-de-coupures-electriques-dans-les-stations-de-ski-cet-hiver-nous-a-promis-le-1662536988
https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/auvergne-rhone-alpes/isere/nous-ne-serons-pas-en-capacite-d-ouvrir-la-station-le-cri-d-alarme-des-professionnels-de-la-montagne-face-a-la-hausse-des-prix-de-l-energie-2605104.html