With less than a year until large UK organisations must comply with new Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) legislation, one of the UK’s leading energy and water consultancies, Utilitywise, has issued a warning that those businesses impacted may be missing out on over £63m of energy savings. Based on preparatory work with over 400 businesses Utilitywise has identified that the average firm that is required to comply with the mandatory average firm is required to comply with the mandatory scheme could save 13 per cent of their energy costs, but only if audit findings are used as a springboard to minimise consumption.
In order to be compliant companies must cover all process, transport and energy use. This can be achieved either by specifically commissioning an ESOS Audit, holding or gaining ISO 50001 certification, holding a valid Display Energy Certificate (DEC) accompanies by a recommendation report for each building or having a Green Deal assessment for each building. Yet, the recommendations in every audit are voluntary.
Commenting on the one year to go deadline Tim Hipperson, head of supply and regulation relationships at Utilitywise, said: “With only 12 months to be compliant this legislation has suddenly become more real for companies right across the UK. Whilst the light touch nature of the way the legislation is welcome, thousands of companies may miss out if they only view ESOS a tick box exercise. Through our work with almost 20,000 clients we know that poor buying and management of utilities stops growth and damages businesses’ bottom lines. Rather, ESOS compliance can act as a springboard for energy to be managed more effectively.”
Hipperson adds: “One of the key aspects of ESOS is that at least one or two Board members must sign off on the compliance. This is a crucial change to how energy might be prioritised by a senior management team. By seeing where the money is being spent, and how this could be managed better, ESOS can help secure more senior buy-in for cost-saving changes from biomass planning to a simple lighting upgrade. With all of the considerable ESOS experience that we have accumulated, Utilitywise has designed a flexible approach to the ESOS process for our clients. This means that we minimise disruption and get the job done quickly and cost-effectively. Clear and practical reports will illustrate exactly where valuable savings can be made, together with a Return on Investment illustration to support decision making.”
