Commercial solar in the Canton of ZurichFrom Zumikon, for business.

Rules for businesses in the Canton of Zurich

New buildings in the Canton of Zurich must generate part of their electricity themselves. The basis is § 10c of the Energiegesetz. For new commercial, industrial and farm buildings, the solar system is therefore usually part of the planning. We size it so that it meets the requirement and fits your business’s load profile.

For existing buildings, the notification procedure applies: solar systems on roofs that are sufficiently well integrated need no building permit. You notify the project with the cantonal form to the local building office. After the confirmation of receipt, a period of 30 days runs. A permit is still needed in historic core zones and in protected townscape and heritage protection areas. For facade systems, the notification procedure requires single-family homes or buildings up to 11 metres high, which is often decisive for halls and commercial buildings.

Large energy consumers (Grossverbraucher)

Sites that use more than 0.5 GWh of electricity or more than 5 GWh of heat a year count as large consumers. They must analyse their consumption and carry out reasonable measures. There are three routes: the universal target agreement with the federal government, the cantonal target agreement or the energy consumption analysis. Own power from the roof reduces purchases from the grid. Whether it is counted in your target agreement, you discuss with the energy office.

Subsidies and one-off payment

The federal government pays the one-off payment (Einmalvergütung) through Pronovo. For commercial systems it is graded by system size. We submit the application and, on request, pre-finance the subsidies. The Canton of Zurich does not subsidise photovoltaics directly. Some cities and communes have their own programmes, which we check when preparing the quote. For the tax treatment in business assets, for example depreciation, your tax adviser can advise you.

Self-consumption in your business

Many businesses with daytime consumption are based in the Canton of Zurich, from workshops to logistics halls. The more solar power you use yourself, the better the system pays off. The calculation with your load profile shows which size makes sense. With a battery storage unit, load peaks can be smoothed out, and with EV chargers company vehicles use the power directly.