Switzerland's federal government on Wednesday passed legislation outlining how the federal administration intends to reach its net zero target by 2040, in addition to the country's climate action regulation.
The federal administration's 2040 net zero target is more ambitious than the country's overall climate target of reaching net zero by 2050, but it does not include emissions from the defence and armament sectors. It targets only scope 1 and 2 emissions — namely, direct emissions and emissions from electricity consumption.
Combined with Switzerland's low-carbon power generation, the annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in question were just 25,000t CO2 equivalent (CO2e) in 2024, the most recent data available.
Indirect emissions under scope 3, which account for about 90pc of the administration's emissions, are not yet included, and the federal government said it would set out how to address scope 3 emissions in 2028.
The amended regulation, which will enter force on 1 November, expects the federal administration to reach its net zero target not just by reducing GHG emissions but also by offsetting residual emissions through negative emissions. The negative emissions may be generated both in and outside Switzerland and must be certified by the federal environment office.
The government puts total costs at 1.5bn Swiss francs between 2027 and 2040, according to the guidance accompanying the regulation change. These include investments in infrastructure, switching to renewable energies such as hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), and purchasing carbon dioxide removal credits.
Annual costs are expected to start at around SFr75mn in 2027-28 and rise gradually to around SFr145mn in 2040.
