Monte Ceneri transmitter

The Monte Ceneri transmitter was first established as the nationwide medium-wave radio transmission station for Italian-speaking Switzerland in 1933.

The original transmission mast – a 120-metre-high free-standing lattice tower insulated from the ground – was constructed in the Monte Ceneri pass (at 46°8'26"N 8°54'56"E).

Today this tower is used for DAB and DVB-T broadcasting, for which purposes a 15-metre-high antenna has been added at the top, so that the full height of the mast is now 135 metres.

The Voice of Russia (VoR) subsequently expressed an interest in acquiring a licence to broadcast from the site using the 558 kHz frequency and on 9 February 2011 it received permission from the Swiss Federal Office of Communications to do so.

[1] VoR began transmissions from Monte Ceneri on 1 April 2011; it has been reported, however, that these will cease after 31 December 2012.