The Electricité Neuchâteloise S.A. (electricity company most part owned by the Neuchâtel Canton) and Electricité de France (EDF, the french national company) operate the power station of Le Châtelot since 1953.

The power station receives the water from the Châtelot Dam which is located some kilometers upstream on the Doubs river just after the famous waterfall "Le Saut du Doubs".

The hydroelectric power station of Le Châtelot is located into the Neuchâtel Canton at the North-West of La Chaud-de-Fond near the small hamlet of Les Planchettes.

 In this area the river Doubs is the border between France and Switzerland, the Centrale du Châtelot is on the Swiss bank of the river (right bank). At this point the Doubs river flows in a very deep and narrow gorge with very steep slopes. The only way to reach the river is a footpath.

So in 1950, when it was decided to built this power station, the only way to reach the river and transport the nessessary materials for the buildind was to install an incline railway from the plateau down to the river.

The incline was built in 1951 and all the materials and all the hydraulic turbines were taken down by the incline railway!