Bergler guides · Commercial & industrial · May 2026
Commercial & industrial 2026 — cut electricity costs, electrify the fleet
If your business uses its own premises — workshop, warehouse, office building or production site — the energy levers revolve around two main themes: cutting electricity costs (self-consumption + peak shaving) and electrifying the fleet (wallboxes, e-trucks). This page covers the four key adjustment screws. Legal references remain German originals.
Maximise self-consumption rate
Each self-consumed kWh is worth about 18–25 Rp./kWh (avoided purchase), each exported kWh only 5–8 Rp./kWh. The self-consumption rate is the most important economic lever of any commercial PV system.
Maximise self-consumption rate
- Check load profile match: SMEs with Mon–Fri operation typically match PV well — the midday peak falls during business hours. Self-consumption rate of 50–80 % is achievable.
- Shift controllable loads: heat pumps, air conditioning, compressed-air compressors, boilers — all can be PV-orientated via an energy management system (EMS).
- EMS couples PV forecast, current load profile and controllable loads. Investment typically CHF 8,000–25,000 depending on system size, payback 3–7 years.
- Summer weekends are critical: on PV-strong Sat/Sun, the system produces but the business doesn't consume. A peak-shaving storage (below) is the natural answer.
- Measurement and visualisation tools (load-curve analysis) are often free from the grid operator — record your own load profile for 4 weeks before investing in an EMS.
Lever #1
A self-consumption rate of 70 % instead of 40 % nearly doubles PV economics. This is the biggest lever — before any storage or wallbox discussion.
Peak-shaving storage
Consumers from about 100,000 kWh/year onwards have their bill split into an energy price (Rp./kWh) and a capacity price (CHF/kW peak per month). The latter often makes up 30–50 % of the total bill.
Peak-shaving storage
- Capacity charge is billed on the highest 15-min average of the month — a single 15-min peak can massively increase the next month's bill.
- A peak-shaving storage (typically 50–500 kWh) covers these peaks. EMS-controlled, dynamically monitoring the capacity threshold and discharging when needed.
- Combination effect with PV: the same battery can also buffer summer midday surplus and feed it back into operations in the afternoon/evening.
- Economics: payback 5–10 years, highly dependent on the grid operator's capacity tariff and load profile variability.
Lever #2
A properly sized peak-shaving battery can reduce monthly capacity charges by 15–35 %. For an SME with CHF 30,000/year in capacity costs, that's CHF 4,500–10,500/year savings.
Employee wallboxes & e-fleet
Once the first employees drive an EV, a thought-out charging concept pays off compared to individual installations.
Charging concept
A load-management system (LMS) dynamically distributes available capacity across all active charging points. The existing building connection usually suffices without reinforcement. Scalable from 4 to 50+ wallboxes.
Billing
Employees pay directly per kWh (assigned tariff), company vehicles via cost centre. Modern LMS handles both automatically — with monthly breakdown per user and vehicle.
PV coupling
If the site has PV, the LMS can prioritise midday sun hours for company vehicles. Employee charging runs in the evening at the standard tariff — self-consumption rate rises.
Electric trucks (e-trucks)
Since 2026, electric trucks in distribution traffic (city, regional, with depot return) are economically competitive — Bergler offers both vehicles and fast-charging stations.
Electric trucks (e-trucks)
- Depot charging overnight: 50–150 kW per bay is enough for most distribution trucks (range 200–400 km).
- Fast charging on site (megawatt charging from 2027): for long-haul trucks or sites with short vehicle turnover. Significantly higher investment, but economical with high utilisation.
- Electricity-cost advantage: an e-truck costs about 30–50 % less per km than a diesel truck — with high annual mileage, the price premium pays back in 4–7 years.
- Incentives: cantonal programmes (e.g. climate funds) often cover 20–40 % of the additional cost vs. diesel — talk to the canton early.
More on Bergler electric trucks
FAQ — commercial setup
Does PV pay off for my business?
In most cases yes — the decisive factor is not system size but the self-consumption rate. An SME with Mon–Fri operations typically achieves 50–80 % self-consumption without storage. With self-consumption rates >50 %, payback periods of 6–10 years are realistic — even faster with high electricity tariffs.
Source: Bergler Energie, advisory practice
Am I in the basic supply or the free market as a business?
End consumers with annual consumption below 100,000 kWh are in basic supply with the local grid operator. Above 100,000 kWh/year, free-market purchasing is possible (so-called 'eligible end consumers'). Once you switch to the free market, you cannot return to basic supply.
Source: Art. 6 para. 2 StromVG (SR 734.7)
How does capacity-charge billing work?
For eligible end consumers and partly also in basic supply with load-curve metering, the capacity price is calculated on the highest 15-min average of the month. A one-time peak (e.g. several machines starting simultaneously) increases the bill for the entire month. Peak-shaving batteries or staggered start-up plans help.
Source: VSE — industry tariff recommendations
Can I deduct employee wallboxes for tax?
Wallboxes are deductible as business investment — typically over 5–10 years. If the wallbox is also used privately (employee home wallbox), the private use share must be declared as a fringe benefit. Consult your accountant for cantonal specifics.
Source: General tax practice, cantonal dependent
What's the difference between full feed-in and self-consumption?
Full feed-in: entire PV output is fed into the grid and compensated by promotion scheme (HEIV or GMP). Requirement: no self-consumption — guaranteed for 15 years. Self-consumption: PV is primarily self-used, surplus is fed in at market price. For a business with its own premises, self-consumption is almost always more economical.
Source: Art. 25–30 EnFV (SR 730.03)
What changes on 1 July 2026 for commercial systems?
Grid-operator take-off for surplus electricity shifts from quarterly average to hourly spot price. Systems >150 kWp without minimum-compensation protection face low and negative spot prices directly. Self-consumption optimisation becomes even more important.
Source: UVEK consultation 16.9.2025 (consultation closed 22.12.2025)
For homeowners (single/two-family)
Residential guide
If you own a single- or two-family home: compensation calculator, minimum-compensation schema, storage simulator.
For landlords, administrators, condos
Apartment buildings & ZEV
Pass electricity to tenants: ZEV, vZEV, LEG, Praxismodell — plus tenant wallboxes and heating replacement.
For full-feed-in projects
Investors & full feed-in
Solar park or large roof without self-consumption: HEIV, GMP, direct marketing + commercial feed-in calculator.
Live electricity prices and market mechanics
Swiss electricity market 2026
Hourly day-ahead prices — plus negative spot prices and legal classification.
Authoritative sources
Only official state sources. The decisive texts are the laws and ordinances currently in force on fedlex.admin.ch.
Legal basis
- Electricity Supply Act (StromVG, SR 734.7), Art. 6 (basic supply)
- Energy Promotion Ordinance (EnFV, SR 730.03), Art. 25–30 (single payments)
- Electricity Supply Ordinance (StromVV, SR 734.71), Art. 19c (guaranteed use of flexibility)
- UVEK consultation 16.9.2025 on revision of energy ordinances (hourly spot price from 1.7.2026)
Information as of: May 2026. This information does not replace individual technical or legal advice.
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