What do communal electricity and tenant electricity mean?
Communal electricity is a practical term for electricity used by shared building systems or areas. Tenant electricity, by contrast, describes a supply model for occupiers, often involving locally generated solar power. The terms refer to different uses and contractual relationships.
Stairwell lighting, lifts and heating systems may need their own operating electricity. Correct cost allocation requires separate assessment; a collective label does not replace a service charge category. Nor does every local electricity concept automatically qualify for a subsidised tenant electricity model.
AT A GLANCE
Property useShared use or individual tenants
MeteringAllocate volumes
ContractClarify supply separately
NeoBid’s own overview.
PROPERTY PRACTICE
What does this mean for your portfolio?
For procurement, market locations should be organised by actual use and contracting party. A communal electricity contract does not automatically cover every tenant’s individual electricity purchases. When solar installations or new supply concepts are added, the metering concept, residual supply and responsibilities must first be agreed. This keeps the volumes included in the tender transparent.
An example.
Our own practical example: a residential building has a meter for stairwell lighting and separate apartment meters. Management tenders the lighting supply. Whether individual apartments participate in a local solar electricity model is a separate process.
Simplified example. The metering concept, contractual arrangements and requirements of statutory models need property-specific assessment.
WHAT MATTERS
Three questions for your portfolio.
01
Which electricity uses belong to which supply point?
02
Who is the contracting party in each case?
03
Are procurement and service charge accounting clearly separated?
Make the distinction clear ↗
An electricity bill labelled “communal electricity” does not establish that the costs can be passed on to tenants. For residential property, the cost category and contractual basis must be distinguished.
Sources reviewed: 18 September 2026 · Editorial team: NeoBid
In our first meeting, we discuss your portfolio, upcoming contract deadlines and objectives. Together, we identify useful documents and next steps. You do not need a complete dataset to get started.
