New legal framework in force since 1 January 2026

Share local energy, Celium supports you.

Celium covers the entire lifecycle of your Local Energy Community: matching with your neighbours, guided setup, automated billing.

I want to join an LEC See how it works
Understanding LECs

What is a Local Energy Community?

Since 1 January 2026, Swiss federal law has allowed neighbours in the same municipality to share their solar electricity over the public grid, with a 20 to 40% discount on grid usage charges.

For the consumer
~20%
savings
on the energy consumed that comes from the LEC
(40% zone)
For the solar producer
~11 ct
per kWh
buy-back price for your surplus within the LEC
(vs 6-8 ct buy-back from the electricity supplier)

The principle is simple

Neighbours with solar panels

produce electricity that they don't consume entirely

They share the surplus with their neighbours

over the existing public grid, at a price calculated automatically to share the gains fairly

Everyone wins

the producer sells at a higher price, the consumer pays less, and the energy stays local

Concrete example

The case of a typical municipality in the Canton of Vaud

Compare the standard (centralised) model with the LEC model and discover the concrete savings for producers and consumers.

In this example, the LEC's internal prices are not negotiated: they are calculated automatically from the DSO's reference tariffs, so that the gains are split equally between producers and consumers. With the average tariffs used here, the producer receives ~11 ct/kWh for their surplus and the consumer pays ~13 ct/kWh for the energy.

Standard (centralised) model: the producer sells at 6-8 ct/kWh to the supplier, the consumer buys at 31 ct/kWh LEC model: solar energy is shared between neighbours over the public grid, at internal prices calculated for a fair split of the gains

Standard model

The producer sells to the electricity supplier 6-8 ct/kWh
The consumer buys from the electricity supplier 31 ct/kWh
Direct exchange between neighbours Not possible
The electricity supplier takes care of everything, but the producer is poorly paid and the consumer pays a premium.

LEC model

Recommended
The producer receives for their surplus (calculated price) ~11 ct/kWh
Residual surplus sold to the electricity supplier 6-8 ct/kWh
Total final consumer price ~25 ct/kWh
Result: the consumer saves ~20% and the producer earns ~60% more on the energy exchanged within the LEC.
Simulator

Estimate your savings in 30 seconds

Enter your situation to get a personalised estimate of your annual savings with an LEC.

4'500 kWh

Average Swiss household: ~4'500 kWh/year

30 %

Depends on local solar production and your profile

Your estimated annual saving

CHF 65 / year

Bill without LEC

CHF 1'395

Bill with LEC

CHF 1'330

Indicative estimate based on average tariffs, with Celium's share (20% of the value created) already deducted. ElCom source

Our solution

Celium covers the entire lifecycle of your LEC

From the first spark to day-to-day management, Celium supports you at every step.

1
Phase 1

Matching

Smart matching

Submit your profile in 2 minutes. Celium automatically finds compatible neighbours in your grid zone and checks the legal criteria.

Topology verification

Celium checks whether you are on the same grid as your neighbours and the applicable discount rate (40% or 20%).

Personalised estimate

Before any commitment, Celium calculates your projected savings based on your consumption, your role and the applicable discount zone.

2
Phase 2

Creation

DSO support

Topology requests, registration, agreement with digital signature: Celium handles all the procedures.

Automatic internal prices

Your LEC's internal prices (surplus buy-back and resale to consumers) are calculated automatically from the DSO's reference tariffs, for a fair split of the gains, and recalculated at every tariff adjustment.

Promotion of your LEC

Your LEC gets a public page on Celium where interested neighbours can apply online. You can also keep it private.

3
Phase 3

Administration

Automated billing

Import your DSO data. Celium calculates the allocation, generates the QR-code bills and tracks payments.

Flow tracking

Real-time dashboard: kWh exchanged, cumulative savings in francs, CO₂ impact. Each member follows their own figures.

Forum & Knowledge base

Exchange with other LEC members. Articles, videos, webinars: everything you need to understand and get the most out of your LEC.

Interactive map

Grouping zones for LECs

The classification (20% or 40%) indicates the reduction in the transport charges for the electricity exchanged within the LEC.

40% groups: same transformer (solid line)
20% groups: same substation (dashed line)
BKW Groupe E Romande Énergie SIG

More DSOs will be added soon (SIL, Viteos, OIKEN…)

Use the layer panel at the top right to turn the 20% and 40% groups on or off. Click on a zone to display its details. You can switch between the OpenStreetMap and Swisstopo base maps.

Join the movement

Find your LEC, or create it with your neighbours

Submit your profile in 2 minutes. Celium automatically connects you with compatible neighbours in your grid zone.

Submit your candidate profile

The unique identifier of your meter. It appears on your electricity bill.

Your data is processed in accordance with the Swiss FADP (nLPD) and hosted in Switzerland.

Transparency

Benefits and limits of an LEC

We believe in full transparency. Here is what an LEC can, and cannot, do for you.

Benefits

Sell your solar surplus up to ~60% higher than what the supplier (the DSO) offers

Save ~20% on the energy consumed that comes from the LEC

A discount on network charges depending on the type of LEC chosen (40% if same transformer or 20% if same substation)

Consume local, renewable and traceable energy

Remain an individual customer of the supplier, with the option to leave the LEC at any time

Strengthen local solidarity and the energy autonomy of the neighbourhood

Beneficial for the supplier too: by encouraging local consumption, the LEC reduces the surplus injected into the grid, a technical and financial constraint that distribution system operators (DSOs) are precisely trying to limit

Limits and constraints

The LEC must be able to produce at least 5% of the total connection capacity. Without a producer, the LEC would have no benefit in any case.

The savings on the energy part as well as on the transport part only apply to exchanges within the LEC. When the producers do not generate enough, at night for example, electricity is consumed at the usual tariff.

Administrative management is complex → Celium takes care of everything

Billing is complex → Celium fully automates this process

Your journey

How it works

From your first idea to a working LEC, here is what you actually do.

1
Matching

I submit my profile

Address, role (consumer, producer or both), capacity: 2 minutes are enough. Celium identifies my DSO and my grid zone.

2
Matching

Celium connects me with my neighbours

Does an LEC already exist in my zone? I join it. Otherwise, Celium shows me the interested neighbours and checks that the group is viable (same grid, 5% threshold).

3
Creation

We form the LEC together

Celium generates the agreement, handles registration with the DSO and the digital signature. I have no administrative forms to fill in myself.

4
Creation

We recruit more neighbours

The larger the LEC grows, the greater the savings. Celium provides flyers, invitation links and a public showcase to attract new members.

5
Administration

Celium bills automatically

Every month, Celium imports the DSO data, allocates energy at 15-minute intervals, generates the bills with a Swiss QR-code and tracks payments.

6
Administration

I track my savings

Real-time dashboard: kWh exchanged, savings in francs, CO₂ impact, payment status. Celium handles everything for you.

Start at step 1
Value sharing

Celium only earns when your LEC creates value

No subscription, no fixed fees. The internal price is calculated automatically from the DSO's reference tariffs, so that the gains are shared fairly between producers and consumers.

Of every franc of value created

40 ct
40 ct
20 ct
Producers Consumers Celium

How the value created in your community is shared: 40 / 40 / 20

Producers

Of every franc of value created

40 ct

go to the producers

Your solar surplus is bought back at a price well above the DSO's buy-back tariff.

Consumers

Of every franc of value created

40 ct

go to the consumers

You pay less for the LEC's energy and benefit from the 20 or 40% grid discount.

Celium

Of every franc of value created

20 ct

fund Celium

Complete management: billing, settlements, compliance and relations with the DSO.

The LEC's internal prices (buy-back of the producers' surplus and resale to consumers) are calculated automatically from the DSO's reference tariffs and recalculated at every tariff adjustment. Celium's share is only taken on the value actually measured at settlement: no value created, no Celium fee. Amounts excluding VAT.

Celium runs your LEC from A to Z

No need to appoint a manager: Celium handles the complete administration of your LEC (billing, compliance, relations with the DSO and flow tracking).

Frequently asked questions

FAQ

A Local Energy Community (LEC) is a grouping of electricity consumers and producers within the same municipality. Since 1 January 2026, Swiss federal law (art. 17d-17e LApEl) allows LEC members to share solar electricity over the public distribution grid, with a 20 to 40% discount on grid usage charges.

Celium charges no subscription and no fixed fees. Its remuneration is a share of the value actually created by your LEC, measured at each settlement: of every franc of value created, 40 cents go to the producers, 40 cents to the consumers and 20 cents fund Celium. The LEC's internal prices (surplus buy-back and resale to consumers) are calculated automatically from the DSO's reference tariffs to guarantee this fair split. No value created, no Celium fee.

The 40% discount applies when LEC members are connected to the same transformer station (grid level 7 / NE7). This is the most favourable case. The 20% discount applies when members are connected to the same substation (grid level 5 / NE5) but not necessarily to the same transformer. Check the Celium interactive map to verify your zone.

Yes, you remain an individual customer of your electricity supplier. You can leave the LEC at any time, in line with the terms set out in the community agreement. You lose none of your rights as a consumer.

The law requires that the total production of an LEC be at least equal to 5% of the consumers' total connection capacity (art. 19e OApEl). For example, if the LEC consumers have a total connection capacity of 200 kW, at least 10 kWp of solar production is needed. Celium checks this threshold automatically for you.

The DSO (Distribution System Operator) is the company that operates the local electricity grid (cables, transformers, smart meters) and delivers electricity to your home. In practice, for the vast majority of households in French-speaking Switzerland, it is also your electricity supplier: the same company (Romande Énergie, Groupe E, BKW, SIG, etc.) handles both the grid and the energy billing. That is why we use the two terms interchangeably on this site.

Celium currently holds the topology data for four DSOs: Romande Énergie (Canton of Vaud, Lower Valais), Groupe E (Canton of Fribourg, parts of Vaud and Neuchâtel), BKW (Bernese Jura, Seeland, Emmental) and SIG (Canton of Geneva). For the other DSOs (SIL, Viteos, etc.), Celium can submit the topology information request on your behalf.

Yes, every LEC participant must have a smart meter for 15-minute interval metering. If you don't have one yet, the DSO is required to install it free of charge within 3 months of the request.

FADP compliant

Swiss data protection

Hosted in Switzerland

Data on Swiss servers

SSL encryption

Secure communications

LEne legal framework

Compliant with the Energy Act

A question?

Contact us

Do you have a question about LECs, about Celium, or about your particular situation? Write to us, we reply within 48h.

Would you like to join an LEC?

Use our matching form instead, it is faster and Celium will be able to analyse your eligibility automatically.

Submit my candidate profile
info@celium.ch