To reduce your bill in Bern, start with the tariff for your address and your consumption. Compare settings, renovation and solar using a full budget rather than assuming one price or payback period applies across the canton.
Identify the tariff for your address Find the DSO, product, year, billing period and meter on your bill. Check the schedule for your municipality and consumption profile. A cantonal average cannot replace your contract; households in a canton do not necessarily share a supplier or tariff.
Compare matching periods Match readings, estimates, kWh, advance payments and adjustments. Separate energy, network, metering, levies and VAT. A higher total may reflect consumption or a different period. Check actual charges before attributing the difference to a general price rise.
Choose measurable savings Identify heating, hot water, charging and unnecessary appliance use. Compare timing, cost, comfort and safety before changing settings. Night electricity is not always cheaper; use your contract’s time bands and prices. Assess control adjustments before buying equipment.
Calculate solar for your home Request monthly generation and consumption during the same hours. Distinguish electricity used on site from sold surplus. Include installed cost, maintenance, finance and replacement. Solar does not freeze every household cost for decades. Compare a battery with a version without storage under the same assumptions.
Confirm grants and payback Have Pronovo support calculated and local programmes checked for the specific project. Confirm conditions, combined support and application timing before ordering. Payback must follow from the quote and actual tariffs under conservative and favourable scenarios. Savings after payback are not all net profit when costs remain.
A project to examine in Bern: a property with several uses In this working example, one building contains a home and a business. It assumes neither a tariff common to the canton nor an already authorised installation. List contracts, meters and account holders before requesting an offer.
Distinguish each part’s operating hours and requirements. A daytime business can change the overall profile, but its electricity must not be arbitrarily assigned to the home in the calculation. Request a simulation retaining contractual boundaries and cost allocation.
Also consider the business closing or changing occupant. Who retains equipment and access rights? How will subscriptions, maintenance and surplus be handled? Resolve these questions before relying on future income to finance the project.
To compare providers, choose a dossier version understood by everyone who will sign. Specify responsibilities, applicable requirements and documents to be supplied. The document’s language cannot replace a clear definition of work, warranties and each party’s commitments.