Too many plants still in the dark about ESOS deadline 04 December 2014

A "significant proportion" of Britain's largest companies are still in the dark about the government's Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) and may be risking penalties of up to £50,000 if they fail to comply by 5 December 2015.

So says certification body BM TRADA, pointing out that ESOS is mandatory, and requires organisations to conduct energy assessments of their buildings, industrial processes and transportation methods, to identify whether improvements can be made, within the next 12 months.

The scheme applies to 'large undertakings' – organisations with more than 250 employees, or with an annual turnover and annual balance sheet of over 50 million and 43 million euros respectively.

Companies within scope that fail to carry out the assessments and notify the Environment Agency by the deadline can be fined between £500 and £50,000. They also risk reputational damage by being named and shamed by the Environmental Agency.

According to the Environment Agency, which is administering the scheme, qualifying organisations must contact the Environment Agency between 1 January 2015 and 5 December 2015, providing confirmation of compliance.

There is no need to pre-register or inform the Environment Agency that your company qualifies before notifying compliance.

If companies qualify for ESOS but are already fully covered by ISO 50001, they don't need to carry out an ESOS assessment. They simply need to notify the Environment Agency of their compliance with ESOS by 5 December 2015.

Though an energy audit is obligatory, there is no requirement to implement the energy-efficiency recommendations identified through the ESOS assessments.

ESOS came into force on 17 July 2014 in response to the European Commission's Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), which requires all 28 member states to introduce corporate regular energy audits.

Its aim is to cut Europe's total energy consumption by 20% within four years by improving efficiency in major corporations.

For more information, use the links below.

Brian Tnham

Related Companies
BM TRADA
Environment Agency

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