The DDPS is divided into the General Secretariat and the following administrative units: Defence, Civil Protection, Sport, armasuisse (defence procurement), the Federal Intelligence Service, the Federal Office of Topography and the Office of the Armed Forces Attorney General. The department’s core activities are the security and protection of the Swiss population, the protection against disasters and emergencies, and the promotion of physical activity through sport. The DDPS has approximately 12,000 full-time-equivalent employees, and the Armed Forces complete annually more than five million days of service. The DDPS is thus equivalent to an enterprise with around 35,000 full-time equivalent employees.
Energy and climate
As the largest department of the Swiss Federal Administration, the DDPS has an annual energy requirement of around 1000 gigawatt hours and generates CO2 emissions of around 200,000 tonnes per year. The Energy and Climate Action Plan sets out the DDPS’s energy and climate targets for the period 2021–2030. The action plan serves also as tool for implementing the government’s target for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions set out in the Federal Administration’s climate package.
Targets
Under the EEC initiative, the DDPS has pledged to meet the following targets:
1. Increasing energy efficiency
Benchmark: 2018/2019
- Target for 2026: +3%
- Target for 2030: +5.5%
2. Switching to renewable energies
Thermal energy and fuels
- Target for 2026: 19% renewables
- Target for 2030: 25% renewables
Electricity
All the DDPS’s electricity already comes from renewable sources.
3. Producing green power
Photovoltaics
- Production in 2021: 7.2GWh
- Target for 2026: +9.8GWh
- Target for 2030: +8GWh
Measures
Like all the participants, the DDPS has undertaken to implement the joint measures. In addition, the DDPS is also implementing the following individual measures:
1. Pilot study – energy-self-sufficient military base
2030: Implementation of various measures
2. Reduction of CO2 emissions related to ground mobility
2030: –22% compared with the average for 2010–2020
3. Reduction of CO2 emissions related to catering
2030: Four measures
4. Expansion of electricity production from photovoltaics
2030: 25GWh/year
5. Support for innovation and pilot projects
2030: 8 projects
Further information
Up-to-date information on the implementation status of this participant’s targets and measures is published in our Energy and Climate Report. The DDPS also provides information on its own website about its commitments in the area of energy and climate.
