Lemon Energy Credit: Disclosure São Carlos is nationally recognized as a hub for innovation, technology and research: home to two public universities and study centers that place the city on the frontier of technologies such as new generation solar energy. Araraquara, in turn, is experiencing a period of accelerated industrial and commercial expansion. The two cities also have something in common: in recent years, a new type of economy began to arrive in both cities, without depending on construction, high investment or bureaucracy. Still, most homes in the region pay their electricity bills the same way, without using any benefits of solar energy. The reason is simple: having your own panels requires a high initial investment, technical design, work and maintenance, a path that is outside the budget of most families. This is the gap that Lemon Energia, a Brazilian climatetech certified as a B Company, aims to close. Not with the installation of equipment, but through shared distributed generation, a model regulated by ANEEL in which the customer's space is connected to a partner solar plant in the region and receives clean energy credits proportional to their consumption. "Sustainability cannot be a privilege for those who have the cash to invest in construction. We see families in the region with a real desire to reduce their environmental impact, but without the capital that an own installation requires. Our role is to make this possible for any residence, without it having to leave the place", says Rafael Vignoli, CEO of Lemon Energia. Today, more than 40 thousand customers across the country already use this model to save on their electricity bills, according to data from the platform. How it works in practice The customer continues to receive energy from the same electrical network as always, nothing changes in the wiring or structure of the property, and the electric shower, air conditioning and other everyday appliances continue to function normally. The difference appears on the invoice: the consumption of clean energy generated by Lemon's partner plant is deducted from the final value of the electricity bill. Thus, the resident pays Lemon for the energy consumed during the month, with a discount, and only the residual conventional consumption and sector fees to the local distributor. A survey by Lemon of its customer base in São Carlos reinforces why this fixed discount model matters in practice: between the peak of summer and the beginning of winter, almost half of the city's properties had no drop in their energy bills, some even saw their bills rise. As Lemon's savings percentage does not depend on changes in consumption, it remains stable regardless of this type of fluctuation. What changes for the region For cities that already concentrate innovation, whether in technology or industrial production, bringing clean energy to residents without depending on investment increases access to a benefit that today only those who have the capital to install their own power plant can achieve. In addition to the savings, the resident can count on Lemon's support throughout the experience: all monitoring, from membership to monthly control of the savings generated, is available through the company's app, without the need for bureaucracy or travel. Want to know how much your business can save? Click here and access the Lemon website and simulate for free, in a few minutes, with no obligation. Lemon Energy, the energy of those who are a reference