Energy Strategy 2050 – Solar power from the roof of the apartment building

• Private Clients
• Real Estate
• SME

In the future, tenants are to receive more electricity from the roof in sunny weather and otherwise, as in the past, electricity from the grid of their power plant or distribution network operator.

Legally speaking, there is a difficulty in this respect in clearly separating energy purchases from the various sources. For this reason, landlords and tenants can join together to form a so called “Zusammenschluss zum Eigenverbrauch”, ZEV (Grouping for personal consumption). This is what the new Energy Act provides for.

In theory, the ZEV now determines which electricity product is ordered from the distribution grid operator. In the case of new buildings, this is determined by the landlord for practical reasons. In the case of a change of tenant, the new tenant is faced with a fait accompli. In the case of an already rented property, on the other hand, the creation of a ZEV is somewhat more complex. The tenants cannot be forced to participate in a merger. This requires persuasion on the part of the landlord. Of course, the new introduction of the ZEV requires a supplement to the lease agreement, which must be notified with an official form. The Swiss Federal Office of Energy has published a guide to the ZEV, in which sample regulations can be found (https://energieschweiz.ch/eigenverbrauch).

For example, it defines precisely the tariff according to which electricity from the in-house photovoltaic system may be charged. The solar electricity must not be more expensive than the electricity that the ZEV obtains from the public grid. What is still unusual at present is that the electricity bill no longer comes from the power company, but from the landlord. And it is paid via the additional costs to the rent.