Niseko Grand Hirafu Snow Forecast

Although new ski lifts are ever more energy efficient, with an increasing proportion running, at least partially, on renewable energy, often generating power through solar panels built in to their structures and increasingly exporting the heat generated by their motors to warm nearby buildings, there remains the question of the energy required for the new lifts’ production in the first place. Lift-manufacturer Garaventa, part of the Doppelmayr/Garaventa Group, the world's largest ropeway manufacturer, has had over 2,000 solar panels installed on its roof of its subsidiary at Goldau in Switzerland, creating an array that can meet more than a third of its annual energy requirements. The new facility of 2,122 panels covers an area of 5,400 square metres and has