ENERGY CONSULTING

In response to the requirements of the Energy Efficiency Act, we provide comprehensive services in the field of energy audits, dedicated to large enterprises operating in Poland. According to the regulations, failure to comply with this obligation may result in financial penalties of up to 5% of the company’s annual revenues.

Our energy audit includes the following elements:

• Analysis and assessment of the condition of devices and facilities consuming energy: We focus on sources of electricity, heat, cooling, as well as on district heating, cooling, and electrical networks. We also take into account technological processes and internal transport.
• Preparation of an energy balance: Based on collected data and additional measurements, we create an energy balance of the plant, identifying key energy consumption indicators.
• Assessment of energy efficiency improvement potential: We estimate the possibilities of optimizing energy consumption in all analyzed areas, determining directions for actions aimed at increasing efficiency.
• Measurements of selected installations and devices: Through precise measurements carried out by our engineers, we determine the potential for energy savings in the areas of electricity, air and water flows, thermography, temperatures, and energy carrier consumption.
• Development of an energy efficiency improvement strategy: We create a 4-year action plan aimed at optimizing energy consumption and reducing the operational costs of the enterprise.

Energy audits are carried out to assess energy efficiency and energy management in buildings, industrial plants, institutions, and other facilities. They have several important objectives and benefits:

• Identifying energy savings: Energy audits allow for the precise identification of areas where energy can be saved. This may include reducing electricity, fossil fuel, and other energy carrier consumption.
• Assessment of energy efficiency: Audits help assess how well a building or installation utilizes energy. They can identify potential sources of energy losses and suggest ways to improve them.
• Reducing energy costs: Improving energy efficiency results in lower energy-related costs. Audits can help identify actions that will reduce energy bills.
• Limiting greenhouse gas emissions: Improving energy efficiency helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide (CO2), contributing to the fight against climate change.
• Raising awareness: Energy audits can increase awareness among facility managers and employees about energy consumption and ways they can contribute to savings.
• Ensuring compliance with regulations: In some jurisdictions, there are regulations requiring regular energy audits, especially in larger commercial and industrial facilities.
• Increasing property value: Improving energy efficiency can increase the value of properties. For investors and property owners, this can be significant, especially in the context of increasing ecological awareness.
• Ensuring energy supply continuity: Audits can identify potential threats to energy supply and suggest measures to ensure reliability and continuity of supply.
• Supporting sustainable development: Energy audits align with the goal of sustainable development by efficiently utilizing resources and protecting the environment.

Energy audits are conducted by energy and energy efficiency specialists, and the results of such audits are often used to develop action plans aimed at improving energy efficiency and reducing energy-related costs.

Every large enterprise is obliged to conduct an energy audit. According to the applicable law (the Act of March 6, 2018 – the Entrepreneurs’ Law), a large enterprise is an enterprise that, in the last two financial years:

• employed an average of at least 250 employees annually, or
• achieved net turnover from the sale of goods, products, and services, as well as financial operations exceeding the equivalent of 50 million euros in Polish currency, and the sum of assets in its balance sheet prepared at the end of one of those years exceeded the equivalent of 43 million euros in Polish currency.

An extension of the enterprise’s energy audit is an energy efficiency audit of the enterprise’s project aimed at improving energy efficiency.

Energy efficiency audits are conducted to obtain energy efficiency certificates, known as “White Certificates,” for specific projects aimed at improving energy efficiency, resulting from Article 19, paragraph 1 of the Energy Efficiency Act of May 20, 2016.

A climate neutrality strategy for enterprises is a new reporting requirement in accordance with Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 26 June 2013, concerning annual financial statements, consolidated financial statements, and related reports for certain types of entities. This obligation requires commercial companies to report greenhouse gas emissions and present the effects of actions taken to achieve the European Union’s climate goals.

The new regulations aim to motivate enterprises to actively manage their impact on the climate and transparently communicate these actions to stakeholders – regulators, supervisors, customers, society, and competitors. Additionally, companies are expected to systematically strive to reduce their negative environmental impact by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. These actions are crucial to slowing the pace of global warming, which significantly affects society and the economy.

Implementing these guidelines is intended to support the European Union’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, and a more ambitious target of an 80-95% reduction by 2050.

Rising energy prices and the planned directive on reporting sustainability activities make delaying energy transformation in enterprises not only costly but soon mandatory.

ESG taxonomy, commonly known as the European Union’s Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of 18 June 2020 on establishing a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, is a new legal initiative by the European Union. The aim of the new regulations is to increase environmental protection by encouraging investment in more environmentally friendly options, moving away from financing projects harmful to the ecosystem.

ESG stands for “Environmental, Social, and Governance.” It is a framework or analytical tool used to assess the social, environmental, and governance impact in the context of investments or the activities of companies and organizations. ESG taxonomy refers to the categorization and classification of ESG aspects, allowing for more precise evaluation and comparison of actions and performance of different entities.

Here is a brief description of each of the three ESG categories:

• Environmental: Refers to aspects related to the impact of an organization’s activities on the natural environment. This includes greenhouse gas emissions, water usage, waste management, nature conservation, and other aspects related to the sustainable use of natural resources.
• Social Responsibility: Concerns social issues such as workers’ rights, health and safety, gender equality, diversity, relationships with stakeholders, access to education and healthcare, and other aspects impacting the community and society.
• Governance: Encompasses the principles and practices of management within an organization, including governance structure, business ethics, transparency, independence of the supervisory board, anti-corruption measures, adherence to ethical standards, and compliance with regulations.

ESG taxonomy helps investors, companies, regulatory supervisory bodies, and other stakeholders more accurately define and assess the extent to which an organization considers ESG aspects in its activities. This tool is increasingly important in the context of sustainable investing and management, as it allows for decision-making that takes into account financial, social, and environmental aspects. ESG taxonomy is also a key tool in striving to achieve sustainable development goals and reducing the impact of organizations on the natural environment and society.

The main goal of assessing an entity in terms of ESG is to develop a synthetic message and an effective way of informing the capital market about the results of the analysis conducted by independent analysts. Therefore, the first step towards climate neutrality should be to calculate the carbon footprint of the organization. Calculating it allows the organization to determine the starting point and a synthetic indicator, whose decreasing value will indicate progress in actions.

Knowing the starting point, the second step is to develop an ESG policy, planning actions both in the long and short term. Having the data, detailed action plans for each year should be developed, followed by monitoring progress in accordance with the so-called “Energy Transformation Plan”.