Zurich city parliament approves Ewz sponsorship despite opposition
The Zurich power company Ewz can continue to spend money on sponsorship, for example for the ZSC Lions, the zoo or the magic forest in Lenzerheide GR. The Greens and AL tried unsuccessfully on Wednesday to abolish all sponsorship.
The city parliament approved all sponsorship contributions for the next three years with a large majority in each case. Ewz spends a total of CHF 1.8 million per year on this form of advertising.
For the Greens and the AL, this is money badly invested. A municipal company does not have to distribute money to randomly selected companies, said Dominik Waser (Greens). The two left-wing parties were particularly annoyed by the support for the ZSC Lions - "an ice hockey club that belongs to rich people" and receives almost half of the 1.8 million francs, specifically 740,000 francs per season. The ZSC Lions would also not fit Ewz's mission in terms of content. "Ice field hockey is unecological," Waser continued.
Sponsorship in Graubünden
The second largest recipient of sponsorship money is the zoo, which receives CHF 624,000. The Limmat Swim receives 162,000 francs, the New Year's Eve Run 135,000 francs.
Ewz also co-finances events outside the city of Zurich: Zauberwald Lenzerheide, a festival of lights with a Christmas market, receives 108,000 Swiss francs per year. Ewz owns six power plants and four reservoirs in Graubünden, where it produces electricity for Zurich residents and also for Graubünden households. (SDA)
