Pricing under the RCP

Nicolas Vodoz Updated by Nicolas Vodoz

Within an RCP, the owner (or the PPE) becomes the electricity supplier for the residents of the building, assuming the responsibilities typically assigned to the distribution system operator (DSO). This includes investment, energy supply, maintenance of facilities, as well as metering and billing services for consumption.

Article 16 of the Energy Ordinance (OEne) specifies how to calculate the prices charged to consumers. The aim is to recoup the investments made by the owner while protecting tenants from potential abuses. Within a PPE, co-owners are free to apply any tariffs they wish.

Here are the 4 cost elements to consider in pricing:

1. Electricity withdrawn from the grid

The costs of electricity withdrawn from the grid include all elements charged by the DSO to the RCP: energy, network usage, taxes, and the subscription of the introduction meter.

These costs are recharged to consumers in the same way, without a markup for the owner.

However, within a microgrid where several buildings are connected to the same grid connection point, the owner establishes a tariff to cover their investments as well as the maintenance costs related to the connection of buildings (wiring, transformers, etc.). In this case, the price charged to consumers is determined based on the effective cost method for solar electricity, as explained below.

2. Solar electricity

The costs of internally produced electricity are covered by the sale of photovoltaic electricity to consumers and by the resale of surplus injected to the DSO. Regulations offer two methods for setting the tariff of solar electricity sold to member consumers of the RCP:

  1. The flat rate: The tariff is a maximum of 80% of the standard electricity price (without peak/off-peak considerations) charged by the DSO that the consumer would pay if they were not a member of the RCP. In this case, the tariff does not need to be justified to tenants.
  2. The effective costs: The tariff is calculated based on the effective costs of electricity production after deducting the revenues from the sale of surplus. If the calculated tariff is lower than the standard product tariff, the difference is shared between the owner and the tenant. If the calculated price is higher than the standard tariff, the tariff must equal the standard tariff, as the owner is not allowed to charge more.

The effective costs include:

  • Depreciation of relevant investments (photovoltaic panels, inverters, wiring to the electrical panel, installation costs, including mounting and scaffolding)
  • Interest on depreciation, calculated according to the WACC (weighted average cost of capital) of production (set at 3.98% for 2025)
  • Operating and maintenance costs (maintenance, repair and replacement of installation, monitoring and surveillance of installation, periodic maintenance, OIBT checks, cleaning of the installation, administrative fees, etc.)

Climkit recommends the flat rate method for clear simplification reasons. Once this method is selected by the owner, Climkit updates the solar tariff annually based on changes in tariffs from the local DSO.

3. Administrative fees

Administrative fees include all costs related to the management of the RCP, such as reading and transmitting meter data, preparing statements, billing consumers, and processing collections, as well as paying the withdrawal network bill.

With a provider like Climkit, administrative costs for metering and billing are billed directly to consumers. Climkit offers meter reading and statement generation (3.50 CHF/month) and, optionally, billing and collections (6.50 CHF/month). See the details of Climkit services for more information.

4. Meter subscription

When the owner finances the meters, these investments must be treated similarly to production installation costs. The lifespan of electronic meters is 10 to 15 years. Annual costs for meters are calculated via a constant annuity over the depreciation period, to which interest defined by the production WACC is added.

If the installation of a meter costs between 200 and 250 CHF for a lifespan of 10 years and 4% interest is added, the owner can charge a "meter subscription" of 2.00 to 2.50 CHF per month per meter from the consumers. Therefore, the purchase of meters by the owner does not increase costs but rather their investment, without altering their return.

Climkit offers, as part of its billing service, to directly collect the meter subscription from consumers on behalf of the owner.

See Billing rates

References:

  • Energy Ordinance (OEne) of 01/02/2024
  • Self-consumption of electricity, David Sifonios, Propriétaires Services SA, 2023.

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