CKW now purchasing solar energy from across Switzerland
Lucerne - The Lucerne-based energy supplier CKW pays the second highest price for solar power in Switzerland. Remuneration is based on the reference market price set by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy. CKW is now also procuring electricity from producers outside of its supply area.
Centralschweizerische Kraftwerke AG (CKW), the Lucerne-based energy supplier, pays for solar power based on the currently elevated reference market price of the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (BFE) and, according to a press release, is charged the second-highest price in Switzerland as a whole. Having previously been limited to its own supply area, procurement options will be now be opened up across the country. The press release explains further that solar power producers located outside CKW’s supply area can also sell to CKW and therefore benefit from the high levels of reimbursement.
Producers in CKW’s area have been benefiting from the high purchase price for excess solar power that they do not use themselves since the beginning of 2022. That was an average of 23.36 centimes per kilowatt hour in the first half of 2022, before rising to 39.04 centimes per kilowatt hour in the third quarter, according to the CKW press release.
Every energy supplier in Switzerland is obliged to purchase the locally produced energy in its supply area. The level of remuneration varies greatly from region to region. However, solar power producers are not forced to sell locally; rather, they are able to offer their supply on the market. CKW has now become the first energy company in Switzerland to offer all solar power producers, regardless of their location, the opportunity to sell their energy to CKW at the currently attractive market prices.
“We are of the opinion that all solar power producers should benefit from the currently elevated electricity prices and not just customers in the CKW supply area. Because solar power producers are not tied to the local energy company, it is worth comparing the reimbursements”, explains Martin Schwab, CEO of CKW, in the press release.
