New ESOS guide for manufacturers launched by EEF

The guide – Understanding the Energy Saving Opportunity Scheme: a Guide for Manufacturers – provides a comprehensive overview of the scheme, which the EEF estimates will affect around a third of all UK manufacturers.

“With the deadline for ESOS compliance hitting at the end of the year it’s vital that companies get up-to-speed as quickly as possible,” said EEF’s head of climate and environment policy Gareth Stace. “For the many manufacturers that have already taken significant steps to improve energy efficiency, ESOS can be viewed as a ‘stock-taking exercise’, ensuring that momentum is maintained and new measures are highlighted and taken when possible.

“For others, the scheme will provide the impetus to map out an energy efficiency strategy from scratch, highlighting the most cost-effective measures to be taken and where considerable savings can be made. With energy prices, most notably electricity, set to rise significantly in coming years, energy efficiency measures remain the most effective and proactive way manufacturers can manage and minimise these increasing costs.”

— Find out more about ESOS at Sustainability Live 2015 —

ESOS requires all companies with more than 250 employees or a turnover of more than €50m to produce detailed reports on their energy use and efficiency every four years. Lead assessors will have to carry out a detailed energy audit, paid for by the business, by 5 December 2015 at the latest, but there is no obligation to implement any of the efficiency measures identified.

According to DECC (Department of Energy & Climate Change), big businesses are potentially wasting around £2.8 billion a year on electricity they don’t need. By implementing recommendations made as part of their ESOS audit, they could slash consumption by 0.7%, saving over £250 million a year on bills.

The EEF’s new guide explains exactly who qualifies; what is required and by when. It is designed to help businesses plan their approach to the scheme and provides valuable links to other sources of help and information. It also explains how manufacturers can go above and beyond ESOS requirements to achieve even greater cost-savings and competitive advantage.

Read the ESOS guide here.

ESOS will be discussed at the new high-level Conference at Sustainability Live 2015. Register to attend the Conference for free.