Figures show more than 95% of UK businesses missing out on energy efficiency savings

Data from the Environment Agency released this month revealed that, as of mid-November, just under 650 of approximately 10,000 organisations covered by Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) have completed the required energy efficiency audits. This slow take-up has led to government relaxing the 5th December deadline to 29th January, provided companies submit a notice of non-compliance by the original date.

“It’s puzzling,” argues independent energy efficiency consultant Dr. Steven Fawkes. “You have all these factors – cheap borrowing from low interest rates, rising energy prices, the fact that the earlier you make changes the earlier you start saving and the more you save – pointing to now as the perfect time to invest in energy efficiency. I’m confused that more large organisations haven’t undergone ESOS audits, and worried that smaller businesses think that – because ESOS doesn’t apply to them – this isn’t something for them to worry about. It makes sense for nearly everyone.’

‘“ESOS has been hogging the headlines but energy efficiency is one of those things that’s genuinely a no-catch, win-win – good for business and the environment” says Jonathan Evans, UK Head of Cleantech, DLL. “True, investments cost money – but if you get the financing structure right then you can quite literally have an investment that pays for itself through bill savings – and then some. Our programs are designed to improve our partners’ profit and performance while reducing their costs, energy use, waste of pollution. We have to get medium-sized businesses to really think about the opportunities available to them – after all, if their competitors invest in being more efficient and they don’t, then businesses risk being left behind.”

To help businesses truly understand the benefits that energy efficiency can bring, global finance solutions partner DLL have published a white paper which explores the business case for investing in energy efficiency for UK businesses.

The white paper explores the factors that make the current environment so attractive, as well as some of the more common energy efficiency measures that businesses can invest in. It also looks at the barriers to investing in energy efficiency for smaller businesses, which typically have fewer accessible funds to invest than their larger counterparts, and potentially less ability to take risks with investments. One solution is intelligently pairing investments with finance solutions so that savings on energy costs offset the regular cost of repayments, creating a cost neutral or positive investment.

The main conclusion of the paper is that, with the business energy efficiency tax landscape set to change following a recent government consultation, now is the perfect time for small and medium-sized businesses to invest in energy efficiency and avoid being left behind by larger competitors.

Download the white paper.