ISO 37001 · Energy
ISO 37001 for the energy sector
ISO 37001 is the standard for anti-bribery management systems. Energy companies meet it in tenders, supplier questionnaires and partner checks. With Zertify you complete an online self-assessment and receive a verifiable certificate within 4 hours after passing and payment.
01: Demand
Why energy customers and tenders ask for ISO 37001
Energy projects mean large contracts, long supply chains and many public counterparties. A municipal utility, a grid operator or an industrial buyer who awards work in this setting wants evidence that the supplier has controls against bribery. The request appears as a line in the supplier questionnaire or as a required attachment to the quote.
Larger groups pass their code of conduct down to suppliers. An installer, an engineering office or a fuel logistics company working for such a group is asked how it handles gifts, agents and requests for facilitation payments. An ISO 37001 certificate answers that with one document and a number the purchasing department can check.
Where the customer is a public body, the buyer has to justify every award. A certificate that can be verified online gives the purchasing file something concrete to point to.
02: Risk areas
Where bribery risk sits in an energy company
The standard does not assume that your company pays bribes. It asks you to find the points in your processes where someone outside the company decides something that matters to you, and to control those points. In energy, these are the typical ones.
- Permits and grid connection
- Building permits, concessions and connection approvals depend on officials. The risk is a payment or favour offered to speed up or steer a decision.
- Tenders and procurement
- Turbines, modules, cables, transformers and fuel are bought in large lots. Kickbacks from subcontractors, bid rigging and leaked tender information are the exposure.
- Agents and local partners
- Projects abroad are often developed through intermediaries paid by success fee. The question is what the intermediary does with that fee.
- Site work and equipment shipments
- Inspections, customs clearance and site access involve many small contacts with officials. Facilitation payments tend to start here.
- Hospitality and gifts
- Site visits, trade fair dinners and invitations to customers or authorities need a written limit and a register.
- Trading and logistics counterparties
- Brokers, carriers and trading partners are business associates. You need to know who they are and who owns them before you pay them.
03: Requirements
What ISO 37001 requires, translated into energy practice
The six core requirements are the same in every industry. What changes is the evidence. This table shows what an auditor or a customer would expect to see in an energy business.
| Requirement | Evidence in an energy company |
|---|---|
| Bribery risk assessment | A list of processes such as permits, tenders and agent contracts, each rated for exposure and reviewed once a year |
| Anti-bribery policy | A short signed policy handed to employees and sent to suppliers with the framework agreement |
| Independent compliance function | A named person, for example the head of legal or finance, who can report directly to the board |
| Due diligence | A check of agents, subcontractors and joint venture partners before signing: ownership, references, payment route |
| Financial and non-financial controls | Two signatures on payments above a set limit, no cash payments to intermediaries, tender documents kept under access control |
| Reporting channel | A confidential mailbox or external contact for concerns, with a written rule against retaliation |
04: Practice
How a small energy company sets up an anti-bribery system
A regional installer, a hydropower operator or a trading firm with forty employees does not need a compliance department. It needs a few documented decisions and someone who owns them.
Map the exposure
Go through permit applications, tenders, subcontractor selection and customs handling. Mark every step where an outside party can decide in your favour or against you.
Write a one-page policy
Say that bribery is prohibited, set a limit for gifts and hospitality, and state who to contact with questions. Management signs it.
Name the compliance contact
Choose a person with a direct line to the managing director or board. In a small company this is often a part-time role.
Add checks to onboarding
Before an agent, subcontractor or partner is paid, someone confirms who owns the company and records why it was chosen.
Open a reporting channel
Employees and suppliers need a way to raise concerns without fear. Publish the contact and keep the log.
Once these five points exist on paper and in daily work, you can answer the self-assessment honestly.
05: With Zertify
Getting the ISO 37001 certificate with Zertify
The self-assessment has 38 yes/no questions. 14 of them are must-meet questions and all must be answered yes. These are the core questions of the assessment, not every requirement of the standard. Of the other 24 questions, at least 16 need a yes. SICE reviews every assessment before the certificate is issued.
The certificate is issued by Zertify under licence from SICE and arrives within 4 hours after passing and payment. It carries a number and a QR code. Your customer opens the public verification page and sees that the certificate is valid. No on-site audit takes place. Each year a short online re-audit confirms that your system still stands.
The price is CHF 749 (€749) in the first year, then CHF 499 (€499) per year including the yearly online re-audit. The certificate is valid for 3 years. The yearly subscription renews automatically and can be cancelled at any time to the end of the current year in your customer account. If you cancel, the certificate ends with the paid year. You do not need an account to buy. Prices for Switzerland and Liechtenstein include 8.1% VAT. If you also certify a second or third standard, a discount of 20% or 30% applies, on the yearly fee as well.
06: Routes
Online certificate or on-site audit: which one fits?
The classic route with an on-site audit by a certification body takes longer and involves auditor visits to your offices. Some tenders name that route explicitly. Read the tender conditions first. If they ask for ISO 37001 without specifying how the audit is carried out, an online certificate with public verification may meet the requirement.
Many energy suppliers simply want to answer the questionnaire this week. For them the online route removes the waiting time. If you are unsure which your customer expects, ask the purchasing department before you start.
07: FAQ
Questions about ISO 37001 in the energy sector
No law is implied by this page. The standard is voluntary. It becomes relevant when a customer, a tender or a group supplier policy asks for it. Small companies can meet it with a short policy, a named compliance contact and basic checks on agents and subcontractors.
It covers the whole organisation, with emphasis on the points where outside parties decide: permits, tenders, agent and subcontractor contracts, shipments and hospitality. You define the scope of your system in the risk assessment.
Yes, you can attach it to your documents. Each certificate has a number and QR code, so the buyer can verify it online. Check the tender conditions to see whether they require a specific audit route.
You complete the online self-assessment, and once you have passed and paid, the certificate is issued within 4 hours. Preparing your answers takes longer if your policy and due diligence rules are not yet written down.
You see which answers were missing. Close the gaps, for example by writing the policy or naming the compliance contact, and run the assessment again. All 14 must-meet questions need a yes, plus at least 16 yes answers among the other 24.
It costs CHF 749 (€749) in the first year, then CHF 499 (€499) per year including the yearly online re-audit. The certificate is valid for 3 years. You can cancel in your customer account to the end of the current year.
08: Guide
Related pages
Check where your energy business stands on ISO 37001
Answer 38 yes/no questions online and see whether your anti-bribery system passes.
Free and without registration.