Audits in Energy Efficiency European Directive: an obligation for companies and an opportunity for the sector

European Union Directive 2012/27/EU of 25 October 2012 sets a deadline of 5 December 2015 for all companies in member countries to carry out independent energy audits by qualified and/or accredited experts. This Directive is binding in all member countries, and the administrative penalties for not performing energy audits on time can range from €300 to €100,000, in addition to other civil or criminal liabilities.

Specifically, the companies obliged to comply with the directive are:

• Companies with more than 250 employees and more than €50 million in annual turnover.
• And companies with a general annual balance sheet total of €43 million.

Furthermore, the Directive indicates that member states should promote energy audits among SMEs. It also lists funding and grant mechanisms for audits, training and energy efficiency improvements. The goal is for each member state to be aligned with the European Union's 2020 strategic plan.

How can we ensure our installations are in compliance with the Energy Efficiency Directive?

There are several steps that must be taken in order to comply with the law:

• Carry out the audits in a timely manner. It is essential to have a key partner for this: Energy Service Companies play a vital role here, along with CIRCUTOR, offering open lines of collaboration that you can consult from our sales network.
• Check that the recommended energy efficiency projects correspond to the reality of the installation by assessing the investment, the economic return and the quality of the proposal. Here you can see different energy efficiency improvement projects that have already been published.
• Inform and train the installation's end users. User consumption habits play an important role in all energy efficiency projects and in proper compliance. This information and training should not be sporadic, but rather should be updated regularly to keep up with technological advances, staff turnover and changing habits and lifestyles. At CIRCUTOR we have an in both face-to-face and online formats.

Benefits of the European Directive for companies and the economy

The Directive will bring about economic benefits as a result of better efficiency in the companies performing the audits and improved energy efficiency overall. Other companies that will benefit directly are:

• Energy service companies that do energy audits with properly trained and certified staff, as indicated by the law.
• Engineering and installation companies that design, implement and monitor energy efficiency improvements to meet the targets.
• Electrical equipment distribution companies with qualified staff that can offer value-added services in the field of energy efficiency.

Whether you are a company that must comply with the European Directive or an energy service company, installer or electrical equipment distributor, CIRCUTOR can partner with you to help you follow the law and obtain all the benefits of Energy Efficiency.