Meter reading. Tariff change. Move notification. Fault report. For energy utilities these are routine transactions — but for each customer they're a touchpoint that leaves either a good or a frustrating impression. Many EVUs still handle these requests by phone, email, or a form on a static website. That costs time on both sides and gives the impression: this organisation hasn't quite reached the digital age yet.

Power Apps and Power Automate make it possible to build a full self-service customer portal — without setting up an expensive CRM project and without waiting months for an external software firm.

What a customer portal for EVUs needs to deliver

A good customer portal for energy utilities meets three requirements:

1. Customers can handle their most common needs themselves — around the clock. Meter reading, tariff comparison, payment adjustment, move notification: all without calling, regardless of opening hours.

2. Data lands directly in the right system. No employee types in meter readings. No PDF travels by email to someone's inbox. New records are created automatically in the ERP, SharePoint, or a Power Apps database.

3. The portal isn't a one-way street. Customers see their consumption, current tariffs, and the status of open requests. They receive proactive notifications for important events (maintenance, price changes, outages).

How the portal works with Power Platform

The core: a Power Apps canvas app

Power Apps canvas apps make it possible to build a custom user interface tailored precisely to an EVU's requirements. The app connects directly to the company's data sources — whether that's SharePoint, Dataverse, SAP IS-U via API, or another interface.

Typical functions in an EVU customer portal:

• Meter reading: customer enters meter reading, optionally with a photo. Power Automate transfers the value to the ERP, sends a confirmation email, and creates a task for billing review.
• Tariff calculator: customer selects their consumption type and immediately sees which tariff fits. If interested, they trigger a switch request that is processed automatically.
• Move notification: form with move date, old and new address. Power Automate coordinates meter reading at move-out and activation at move-in — no manual intervention.
• Fault report: customer describes the fault, selects the affected installation from their property list, uploads a photo if needed. A ticket is automatically created in the internal system and the technician is notified.

The process engine: Power Automate

Every customer action in the portal triggers a structured process. Power Automate handles orchestration:

• Validation: is the customer number valid? Do the meter ID and property match?
• Routing: the request is assigned to the right internal team — simple requests go straight to the ERP, complex cases go into a Teams queue for manual handling.
• Confirmation: customer receives a structured confirmation with a reference number and expected processing time.
• Status update: when the status changes, the customer automatically receives a notification.

Authentication: Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD)

For a customer portal showing real customer data, authentication is essential. With Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD), EVUs can set up secure login:

• B2C configuration allows customers without a Microsoft account to register
• Single sign-on: users who already have a Microsoft account log in without a new password
• Multi-factor authentication protects sensitive customer requests (e.g. account data, tariffs)

What Power Platform is not here: a universal solution

A Power Apps customer portal suits EVUs with up to tens of thousands of customers and manageable process variety. At very high transaction volumes, complex ERP mapping, or strict latency requirements in real-time metering systems (smart meters), a more differentiated architecture is needed.

For most municipal utilities and regional suppliers in Switzerland, however, Power Platform is exactly right: flexible, quickly deployable, and deeply integrated into the Microsoft ecosystem that many EVUs already use for internal purposes.

Typical implementation time and costs

An EVU customer portal with the four core functions (meter reading, tariff, move, fault) can be built in 10–16 weeks:

Running costs are limited to Microsoft licences (Power Apps per-app or per-user) and ongoing maintenance — no expensive server infrastructure, no proprietary licence model.

Conclusion

Customers today expect self-service — including from their energy provider. A Power Apps customer portal delivers that without launching a large CRM project. It uses the Microsoft infrastructure the EVU may already own, can be expanded step by step, and measurably reduces the load on customer service.

Book a potential analysis for your EVU customer portal now