Energy company Groupe E has violated the law with advertising

The proceedings at the SFOE are based on a complaint filed by Suissetec in February 2019, the association announced on Friday. The verdict against the Groupe E employees was handed down on November 18, 2020 and is now legally binding.

A spokeswoman for Groupe E confirmed the matter at the request of the Keystone-SDA news agency. The company had included a brief reference to the new online store of its subsidiary Groupe E plus on its electricity bills to companies and private individuals. Electrical appliances are sold there.

It was not the intention to gain a competitive advantage from the customer data, explained the media spokesperson. At no time were the employees involved aware that their actions could violate the applicable legal system.

Also active on the free market

Electricity suppliers in Switzerland still have a monopoly position in the private customer sector. In addition, they are usually also active on the free market in other business areas, including building technology.

The law prohibits companies from using address data from the monopoly sector for other purposes. The Suissetec association has repeatedly criticized the fact that its member companies do not have a level playing field in competition with state-owned electricity suppliers.

In its press release, the association therefore describes the SFOE's decision as a "milestone in the fight against distortions of competition by state-affiliated companies". In 2019, the SFOE already convicted and fined those responsible at Elektrizitätswerk des Kantons Schaffhausen (EKS) in a similar case.

Groupe E was created in 2005 from the merger of Fribourg Electricity Works (FEW) with Electricité Neuchâteloise SA (ENSA). (SDA)