Unveiled in the Neuchâtel mountains, the installation marks a major milestone in renewable energy innovation and has already drawn significant international attention.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by key representatives from Swiss Federal Railways (CFF), the Federal Office of Transport (OFT), the Neuchâtel State Ministry, and the Department of Territorial Development and the Environment, including its head, Mr Laurent Favre. Delegations from France, Belgium, Israel, Indonesia, and South Korea were also present, signalling growing global interest in replicating this pioneering technology.
The plant, now officially approved by the Federal Office of Transport after a year of extensive testing and analysis, has begun running passenger trains over it from Monday, April 28, 2025. The project’s removable solar panels - installed between the rails - offer a unique solution to the challenge of finding space for large-scale solar installations in land-constrained Switzerland.
Switzerland must increase its solar power output sevenfold by 2035, reaching nearly 28 terawatt hours (TWh) to meet its climate targets. Rail infrastructure could play a vital role in this transition. With 5,000 km of track available nationwide, Sun-Ways estimates that railways alone could produce 1 TWh of electricity annually - enough to power 300,000 households - meet 30% of public transport’s electricity needs, and cut CO₂ emissions by 200,000 tonnes each year. That would account for about 3% of Switzerland’s national solar energy target.
The vision for the Sun-Ways concept began on a train platform in Renens, inspired by the potential of otherwise unused track space. While similar ideas have been tested globally, Sun-Ways is the first to implement a fully removable and operational solar plant on a line open to regular rail traffic.
At the heart of the project is a pilot installation made up of 48 solar panels, each with a capacity of 385 watts. This setup provides a total output of 18 kilowatts, with an annual energy yield estimated at 16,000 kilowatt hours. The electricity generated will be fed into the local grid just 500 meters from the installation site. Over the next three years, Sun-Ways and its partners will conduct detailed evaluations to understand the durability of the solar panel coatings, the effects of soiling, and the plant’s overall compatibility with daily rail operations.
The system's deployment was made possible by the PUMA railway machine, developed by Scheuchzer SA. The machine was showcased at the inauguration and can install up to 150 panels per hour, demonstrating the viability of scaling up the technology for widespread use. The speed and efficiency of this system marks a major step toward industrialisation of track-based solar energy.
This ambitious project is backed by a broad coalition of Swiss industry and public sector partners, including DG-Rail, GESTE, Meccad, RM voie ferrée, Romande Energie, Scheuchzer, the Fonds Vitale Innovation des Services industriels de Genève, transN, and Viteos. Sun-Ways has also received support from innovation agency Innosuisse, the cantons of Neuchâtel and Vaud, the funding platform Venture Kick, and the Solar Impulse Foundation.
“This is just the beginning,” said Joseph Scuderi, founder of Sun-Ways. “We're already working with the HES-SO Valais to develop a railway Smart Grid that can supply trains directly with solar energy.”