SACEN SA

What SACEN SA does

SACEN SA is a Swiss public-municipal energy services company founded in 2013 and headquartered in Delémont, canton of Jura. It is wholly owned by 10 communes — Courchapoix, Delémont, Develier, Lamboing, La Neuveville, Moutier, Nods, Saint-Imier, Soulce, and Tramelan — which collectively commercialize roughly 230 million kWh of electricity per year across the Jura and Jura bernois cantons and serve as SACEN's exclusive distribution channel.

The company's core offering is an integrated energy transition platform built around four product lines: three electricity products (AMBRE for 100% local solar, TOPAZE for local solar plus Swiss hydro, OPALE for standard hydro); three community energy-sharing solutions (Community CA, RCP, and CEL) that enable photovoltaic self-consumption across single buildings or multiple buildings under Swiss Energy Strategy 2050; a public EV charging network (Smotion) integrated with the national eCarUp roaming platform (30,000+ stations) plus a turnkey residential charging solution (CHARG'IMMO); and a citizen lending product (CitEn) that finances municipal renewable projects at 2.25% over 25 years. The underlying technology layer is a digital energy management platform that aggregates smart metering, photovoltaic production, billing, and load balancing; SACEN is a founding shareholder of Smart Data Energie SA (20 distributors, 550,000+ meters) and a shareholder of INERA SA (8 Romandie distributors).

SACEN monetizes through a mix of electricity supply margins, recurring subscriptions (CHF 2.50-51/month per consumer for community programs and CHARG'IMMO), usage-based EV charging fees (59 cts/kWh with 10% platform commission via eCarUp), smart metering licensing fees (CHF 60-175/borne/year), CitEn loan coordination, and modular Energy Delegate mandates from 9 public entities. The company employs 18 collaborators (11.5 FTE), holds no private equity or external funding, and operates strictly inside the cooperative model set by its commune shareholders.

Name

SACEN SA

Legal name

SACEN SA

Website

https://sacen.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SACEN SA is a Swiss energy services company, wholly owned by 10 Jura and Jura bernois communes, that commercializes ~230 million kWh/year, operates the Smotion EV charging network and CHARG'IMMO residential charging solution, and delivers community energy-sharing, smart metering, and citizen-lending products to municipal and residential customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Energy Services

NAICS

Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution (2211), Electric Power Distribution (221122), Electric Power Transmission, Control, and Distribution (22112), Solar Electric Power Generation (221114)

SIC

Electric Services (4911), Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900)

akta.pro primary industry

DER Aggregation & Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) (EUAMAJAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

DER Dispatch, Aggregation & Virtual Power Plant (VPP) Integration (EUADALAI), Charging Network Operators & CPOs Offering Smart Charging/V2G (EUAFAMAD), Meter Installation, Exchange & Field Services (EUADAFAF), Distributed Storage (Behind-the-Meter Batteries) (EUAMAJAE), Demand Response & Load Flexibility Services (EUAMAJAF)

Keywords

• Electricity supply services
• EV charging networks
• Community energy programs
• Smart metering solutions
• Renewable energy distribution

Headquarters

HQ city

Delémont

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Electricity Supply & Commercialization: SACEN SA ensures the supply and commercialization of electricity for its 10 commune partners and their end customers (~230 million kWh annually). Includes objective market analysis, short/medium/long-term procurement, renewable energy management, and origin guarantees. Revenue derived from energy sales and distribution fees.
2. Smart Metering Services: Manages smart metering deployment and data platform operations for partner distributors through Smart Data Energie SA. Licensing revenue from meter data management and platform services.
3. EV Charging Network (Smotion): Public EV charging network operating 59 cts/kWh tariff across all Smotion stations. Revenue from charging sessions, with 90% passed to station owners and 10% retained as platform commission via eCarUp.
4. Charg'Immo - EV Charging for Buildings: Turnkey EV charging solution for residential building parking lots. Revenue from user subscriptions (monthly fees for borne rental or purchase at CHF 9-51/month), activation fees (CHF 370), and borne sales. CHARG'IMMO+ variant where the local partner finances pre-equipment.
5. Community Energy Services (CA/RCP/CEL): Community energy management with monthly member subscriptions (CHF 2.50-9.60/month per member), project setup fees (CHF 350-800 per community), and optional add-ons (internet connectivity, paper billing, meter rental).
6. Energy Policy Delegation & Advisory: SACEN acts as Energy Delegate for 9 public entities, providing energy policy monitoring, building consumption tracking, and Cité de l'énergie certification support based on a modular service catalog.
7. Energy Efficiency Subsidy Program: Promotes high-efficiency appliances (refrigerators, dishwashers, dryers, freezers, range hoods) with CHF 40-70 subsidies funded by SACEN in collaboration with BKW, Topten, and 8 local energy distributors.
8. CitEn Citizen Lending: CitEn enables local citizens to invest in renewable energy projects via 25-year loans to municipalities at 2.25% interest rate, with minimum investment of CHF 500 and maximum of CHF 100,000. SACEN coordinates project implementation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SACEN SA ensures the supply and commercialization of approximately 230 million kWh of electricity annually for its 10 commune shareholders across the Jura and Jura bernois cantons. It operates the Smotion public EV charging network (integrated with eCarUp's 30,000+ station national platform), provides community photovoltaic energy sharing programs (Community CA, RCP, CEL), delivers turnkey building EV charging (CHARG'IMMO), manages smart metering through its founding shareholding in Smart Data Energie SA, and enables citizen lending (CitEn) for renewable energy project financing.

Product overview

SACEN SA operates as a multi-product energy services platform combining electricity supply, renewable energy products, EV charging infrastructure, and communal energy management services. The core offerings include three distinct Community energy-sharing products (Community CA, Community RCP, and Community CEL) for photovoltaic energy distribution, three electricity products (AMBRE, TOPAZE, OPALE) differentiated by energy source, the Smotion EV charging network with CHARG'IMMO building solutions, the CitEn citizen investment product, smart metering services via Smart Data Energie SA, and communal energy policy delegation services. The company serves 10 partner municipalities across the Jura and Jura bernois cantons in Switzerland.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Smotion: Electric charging solutions brand commercializing various electric vehicle charging stations under the Smotion name, including AC and DC charging stations.
• Community CA
• Community RCP
• Community CEL
• CHARG'IMMO
• CitEn
• AMBRE
• TOPAZE
• OPALE
• Eneo

Products and services

• Smotion EV Charging Network Public EV charging network spanning the canton of Jura and Jura bernois region. Integrated with the national eCarUp roaming platform (30,000+ stations), offering 59 cts/kWh uniform tariff with multi-payment options (app, card, QR code/credit card). Smart load balancing across multiple stations.
• CHARG'IMMO / CHARG'IMMO+ Building EV Charging Turnkey EV charging solution for residential building parking lots in the Jura and Jura bernois region. CHARG'IMMO requires owner investment in pre-equipment (CHF 2,230 borne purchase + CHF 9/month subscription + CHF 370 activation); CHARG'IMMO+ has partner financing of pre-equipment. Intelligent load management dynamically distributes available electrical power across multiple charging points without requiring network reinforcement. Supports solar self-consumption integration.
• Community CA (Self-Consumer Communities) Self-Consumer Community solution enabling residents of buildings with shared photovoltaic installations to benefit from locally produced solar energy at preferential rates. Includes online consumption visualization platform, billing, and automatic meter reading. Subscription: CHF 2.50/month per member + CHF 350 project fee per community.
• Community RCP (Proper Consumption Groupings) Proper Consumption Grouping solution allowing priority access to photovoltaic energy produced within the grouping at preferential rates, with regular consumption statements and optional market access for eligible groups. Subscription: CHF 9.60/month per member (base) + optional add-ons (meter rental, internet connectivity, paper invoicing) + CHF 350 project fee per regroupement.
• Community CEL (Local Electricity Communities) Local Electric Communities solution enabling energy sharing between multiple buildings within the same municipality at reduced network tariffs (20% or 40% reduction for solar energy within CEL). Subscription: CHF 7/month per member + CHF 800 project fee per community. Flexible exit terms with 3-month notice.
• CitEn - Prêt citoyen (Citizen Loan) Citizen loan product enabling local residents to invest in renewable energy production projects (photovoltaic, heat production systems) managed by municipalities. Minimum investment CHF 500; maximum CHF 100,000. Guaranteed 2.25% interest rate over 25 years with annual principal repayments of 1/25th and annual interest payments.
• AMBRE Electricity Product 100% local solar electricity product composed exclusively of photovoltaic energy produced locally at SACEN partner installations, certified under the Swiss guarantee of origin system. Targeted at end consumers in the Jura and Jura bernois cantons seeking 100% local renewable electricity.
• TOPAZE Electricity Product Premium electricity product combining locally produced photovoltaic energy from SACEN partners with Swiss hydroelectric power, certified under the Swiss guarantee of origin system.
• OPALE Electricity Product Standard electricity product composed of hydroelectric energy, climate-friendly and certified by the Swiss guarantee of origin system, available through all SACEN partner distributors.
• Smart Metering Services Intelligent metering solution (smart metering) for digital energy management. Managed by Smart Data Energie SA platform serving over 550,000 energy meters across 20 energy distributors (electricity, water, heat, gas/CAD), with 120,000+ smart meters already deployed. Includes automated meter reading, billing, and big-data processing with AI integration planned for energy savings optimization.
• Energy Policy Delegation Services Communal energy policy support services including Cité de l'énergie label management, energy master planning (PDComE), public conferences, school programs (Ecole de l'énergie label), building consumption monitoring, and modular service catalog for 9 mandated municipalities.
• Supply and Commercialization Services Electricity supply and commercialization services including objective market analysis, structured procurement across short/medium/long-term horizons, renewable energy management, and origin guarantees for partner communes. Manages ~230 million kWh annually.
• Efficace Ensemble Appliance Subsidy Program Energy efficiency subsidy program promoting high-efficiency appliances (refrigerators, dishwashers, dryers, freezers, range hoods) with CHF 40-70 subsidies funded by SACEN in collaboration with BKW, Topten, and 8 local energy distributors for residents of Jura and Jura bernois.

Named customers10 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered major, core, minor and flagship.

• BKWmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026BKW collaborates with SACEN and 7 other energy distributors in the 'Efficace Ensemble' program to promote high-efficiency appliances (refrigerators, dishwashers, dryers, freezers, range hoods) with CHF 40-70 subsidies for Jura and Jura bernois residents, in support of national energy efficiency targets.
• ToptenmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2026Topten is an independent comparison platform for high-efficiency appliances. It provides the operational platform for the 'Efficace Ensemble' subsidy program, handling application processing and subsidy payments. SACEN provides the funding.
• Smart Data Energie SAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021SACEN is a founding shareholder of Smart Data Energie SA, a joint company of 20 energy distributors developing a common smart metering solution for 550,000+ energy meters (electricity, water, heat, gas/CAD). The big-data platform enables automated meter reading, billing, and energy community management (CEL). SACEN has reached 120,000 smart meters deployed.
• INERA SAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2020SACEN is a shareholder of INERA SA since June 2020, which aggregates eight Romandie energy distributors to jointly develop products and services for Energy Strategy 2050 compliance. INERA also develops and licenses CHARG'IMMO EV charging solutions to regional distributors including SACEN.
• Local distributors for CHARG'IMMO (ALTIS, Genedis, Gruyère Energie, IB-Murten, Monthey Energies, SID, SEFA, SiL, SI Nyon, VoEnergies)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2020Ten local energy distributors resell and deploy the CHARG'IMMO turnkey EV charging solution for residential building parking lots across their respective service territories, offering feasibility studies and installation coordination.
• eCarUpcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2019The Smotion EV charging network is integrated with the national eCarUp roaming platform, which covers 30,000+ charging stations across Switzerland. eCarUp provides the billing platform (retaining 10% commission), app, card access, and QR code payment infrastructure for all Smotion public stations.
• Université Populaire Jurassienne (UPJ)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Collaboration with UPJ to deliver 'Consommer moins et mieux' (Consume less and better) workshops, explaining kilowatt-hours, energy production, and energy savings to citizens.
• ICECUBE2DOTNETminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 May 2018ICECUBE2DOTNET (Route de Moutier 109, 2800 Delémont) provides website hosting and generates the IceCube2.Net CMS platform used for the sacen.ch website.
• ArtionetminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2018Artionet (artionet.ch) designed and maintains the sacen.ch website, as noted in the website footer.
• 10 Communes (Courchapoix, Delémont, Develier, Lamboing, La Neuveville, Moutier, Nods, Saint-Imier, Soulce, Tramelan)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013The 10 founding communes collectively own 100% of SACEN SA and serve as both shareholders and primary distribution channels. They collaborate on electricity supply (230+ million kWh/year), smart metering, EV charging, community energy programs, and energy policy delegation. Each commune's service électrique / services industriels (SEC, SID, SED, SEL, SELN, SIM, SEN, STSI, SES, SET) delivers SACEN products locally.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Romande Energie: Largest electricity distributor in French-speaking Switzerland (Canton Vaud), with end-to-end generation, distribution, EV charging, and energy services. A larger incumbent operating across overlapping product lines with SACEN.
• BKW AG: Major Swiss integrated energy company active in generation, distribution, EV charging networks, and energy efficiency programs. BKW is already a SACEN partner in the Efficace Ensemble subsidy program, making it a directly comparable operator in adjacent segments.

Direct peers

• Services Industriels de Genève (SIG): Communal multi-utility serving Geneva with electricity, gas, thermal networks, EV charging, and renewable community programs. Comparable in integrated utility-plus-electromobility-plus-community-energy scope.
• Gruyère Energie SA: Swiss Romandie local energy distributor covering the Gruyère region. Listed CHARG'IMMO distribution partner with overlapping electricity supply and EV charging activities.
• Groupe E SA: Multi-commune Swiss energy distributor serving Fribourg and surrounding cantons with electricity, heating, and electromobility services. Closest comparable to SACEN in offering breadth and public-utility governance model.
• Services Industriels de Nyon (SI Nyon): Municipal multi-fluid utility serving Nyon with electricity and EV charging; CHARG'IMMO distribution partner. Closely matches SACEN's commune-shareholder structure and bundled product model.
• Services Industriels de Moutier (SIM): One of SACEN's 10 founding commune partners, providing electricity and related services to Moutier. Useful comparable for the commune-level service électrique model and integration with SACEN's centralized platform.
• Services Industriels de Lausanne (SiL): Lausanne's municipal utility offering electricity, heating networks, EV charging, and energy transition services. Among the partners reselling CHARG'IMMO, providing a direct benchmark for similar product portfolios.

Emerging players

• Smart Data Energie SA: Joint venture of 20 Swiss energy distributors (including SACEN as founding shareholder) operating a multi-fluid smart metering platform for 550,000+ meters. Overlaps with SACEN's smart metering business and provides a digital utility data-services benchmark.

Others

• eCarUp AG: National Swiss EV charging roaming platform integrating Smotion and 30,000+ stations. Functions as the upstream enabler for SACEN's public charging business and a comparable platform model in the Swiss EV ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SACENSA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sacen-sa

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SACEN SA