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Published on 7 July 2025

Swiss dams – second to none

Switzerland has more dams than any other country: the federal government is responsible for 222 major dams and the cantons for roughly 1,000 small-scale ones. This is not particularly surprising. Switzerland, with its abundance of rivers and mountains, is ideally suited to generating hydroelectricity.

Aerial view of a curved dam in a narrow, wooded gorge, with a green reservoir behind it, steep rocky cliffs and a bright sun glinting on the right.