Self-consumption can be raised from 30-40% to 70-90% with four combinable levers: battery storage, load shifting, an energy management system and ZEV/vZEV. Every kilowatt-hour consumed on site replaces grid electricity at 20-30 Rp./kWh with own production at 8-12 Rp./kWh. Load shifting needs no additional investment and alone delivers 5-15 percentage points; BACHMANN GROUP reaches a 96% self-consumption ratio with 24/7 operation.
Key Takeaways
8 min read
Key Takeaways
8 min read- Unoptimised, the self-consumption ratio sits at 30-40%. With battery storage, load shifting, EMS and ZEV, 70-90% is realistic.
- Four combinable levers: battery storage, load shifting (no investment), energy management system and ZEV/vZEV.
- Every kWh consumed on site saves the difference between grid electricity (20-30 Rp.) and own production (8-12 Rp.), typically 10-20 Rp./kWh.
- BACHMANN GROUP: 96% self-consumption ratio at 2'809 kWp, the reference case for Swiss production businesses running 24/7.
Self-consumption is the decisive economic lever for every solar system. Every kilowatt-hour consumed directly on site replaces expensive grid energy at 20-30 Rp./kWh with self-produced energy at 8-12 Rp., a saving of 10-20 Rp. per kWh. Every kilowatt-hour fed into the grid instead earns only 5-12 Rp./kWh. The goal is clear: maximise self-consumption. The good news: one central lever, load shifting, needs no additional investment and can be implemented immediately.
Why self-consumption is the key to economic viability
The economics of a solar system depend not only on the installed capacity but, to a large degree, on how much of the electricity produced is consumed on site. The price structure of the Swiss electricity market makes this effect particularly clear.
Self-produced solar electricity typically costs commercial businesses 8-12 Rp./kWh (levelised cost, depending on system size, financing and site). Grid electricity for commercial customers costs 20-30 Rp./kWh (ElCom 2025). Surpluses fed into the grid earn only 5-12 Rp./kWh. The economic advantage of self-consumption over feed-in is 8-20 Rp. per kWh, a considerable difference.
A business with an annual consumption of 500’000 kWh and a 300 kWp system that raises its self-consumption ratio from 35% to 80% replaces around 225’000 kWh of grid electricity per year with its own production. At a cost difference of 18 Rp./kWh, that is CHF 40’500 in additional annual savings, which directly shortens the payback period.
Four levers for more self-consumption
Battery storage
Battery storage shifts solar surpluses from midday production into the evening and night hours, when the system is not producing but the business still, or again, needs electricity. For production businesses with night or late shifts, storage is the most effective single lever for raising self-consumption.
Modern LFP battery storage (lithium iron phosphate) reaches up to 8’000 charge cycles at 80% depth of discharge. That corresponds to more than 20 years of operation. The combination of higher self-consumption and peak shaving makes commercial storage in Switzerland economically attractive, with payback periods of typically 4-6 years.
More on costs, economics and use cases in the article Commercial storage in Switzerland.
Load shifting
Load shifting is the only one of the four levers that requires no additional investment. The principle: flexible loads (processes and equipment that do not have to run at a fixed time) are moved into the hours of highest solar production.
Typical shiftable loads in commercial businesses:
- EV charging: charge the fleet during the day instead of at night
- Compressed air: compressors fill the air reservoirs during the solar peak
- Heating and cooling: use thermal inertia, bring rooms or production halls to target temperature during the day
- Production processes: place energy-intensive steps in the solar peak where the production schedule allows
Without any hardware investment, consistent load management often delivers 5-15 percentage points more self-consumption.
Energy management system (EMS)
An energy management system automatically coordinates solar production, battery storage, loads and grid draw, in real time and on the basis of PV forecasts, load profiles and grid price signals. Ampere Dynamic’s AI-controlled EMS handles this coordination fully automatically: every second it decides whether the storage charges or discharges, which loads are activated when, and when energy should be drawn from the grid.
The economic effect of an EMS typically lies in raising the self-consumption ratio by a further 5-15 percentage points compared with an uncontrolled system with storage. Add to that optimised peak shaving: the EMS detects an impending power peak and discharges the storage pre-emptively. That lowers the monthly demand charge for good.
ZEV / vZEV
The self-consumption community (ZEV) and the virtual ZEV (vZEV), possible since 1 January 2025, extend the self-consumption base to several metering points and buildings. Instead of feeding a surplus into the grid, it is allocated internally to the next consumer, at a ZEV-internal price of 15-22 Rp./kWh instead of the 5-12 Rp./kWh feed-in tariff.
For businesses with several buildings, tenants or neighbouring companies, the vZEV is the lever with the greatest multiplier effect: it multiplies the self-consumption base without enlarging the solar system.
All the details on the vZEV, its requirements and the steps to set one up are in the article Virtual ZEV (vZEV).
From 30% to 96%: BACHMANN GROUP as the real-world example
The most convincing real-world example of maximised self-consumption comes from BACHMANN GROUP (see the reference project).
Unoptimised solar system
- Self-consumption ratio 30-40%: most of the solar electricity is fed into the grid
- Surpluses are fed in at 5-12 Rp./kWh instead of being used internally
- No coordination between load profile and solar production
- High dependence on grid electricity at 20-30 Rp./kWh
BACHMANN GROUP: optimised
- 96% self-consumption ratio: almost no electricity is fed into the grid
- 2'809 kWp system covers most of the production demand
- 24/7 operation uses solar electricity by day, storage buffers for the night
- Minimal grid dependence, maximum cost predictability
An important note: BACHMANN GROUP’s 96% is the result of an exceptionally favourable load profile: 24/7 packaging production with constant electricity consumption at night as well. For typical commercial businesses with a day shift and no night operation, realistic targets are a self-consumption ratio of 70-90% with battery storage and ZEV. The four levers are matched individually to the business’s load profile.
How to start the optimisation
Self-consumption optimisation: the path to the maximum ratio
Self-consumption analysis: where do you stand today?
The starting point is an analysis of your current load profile and the existing or planned solar system. We determine the current self-consumption ratio and identify the potential of each lever (storage, load shifting, EMS, ZEV).
Prioritise measures: what delivers the most?
Load shifting costs nothing and can be implemented immediately. Battery storage delivers the largest absolute gain for businesses with evening or night consumption. ZEV/vZEV is the lever when several buildings or metering points exist. The EMS coordinates all levers automatically.
Implementation: install storage, EMS and ZEV
Ampere Dynamic plans and delivers the measures turnkey: battery storage sizing, EMS integration, ZEV or vZEV registration with the grid operator, subsidy application for measures that can be combined.
Monitoring & follow-up optimisation
The AI-supported EMS learns from operating behaviour and optimises continuously. Regular reports show the self-consumption ratio, feed-in, peak-shaving results and economics. Response time for critical faults: 2 working days.
Ampere Dynamic accompanies commercial businesses from the first self-consumption analysis to ongoing optimisation. Since its founding in 2020 the team has delivered 197 large-scale systems with a total capacity of 53.5 MWp (as of 2026-09), all with a focus on maximised self-consumption.
For a detailed look at the legal framework of the vZEV, read the article Virtual ZEV (vZEV). Information on the costs and economics of battery storage: Commercial storage in Switzerland.