INDUSTRY FOCUS by
THE ENERGY MANAGERS ASSOCIATION
ESOS: Reflecting (Phase 1) and Improving (Phase 2) The ESOS Phase 2 compliance deadline is now 6 months away and fast approaching. Some 37 notifications have already been received by the Environment Agency (EA) on their new notification system for Phase 2. However, the EA’s audits reviewing the organisations’ Phase 1 ESOS assessments and compliance are nowhere near over. This important regulatory work is to continue over the coming months. Therefore, if you are selected for the audit, you should ensure that your ESOS assessment/ evidence pack is readily accessible, just in case. As a result of the EA compliance audit you may be required to undertake ‘further actions’ to ensure that your ESOS assessment meets with the legal standard.
The EA completed 490 compliance audits and the main areas where issues were identified during the 2017/18 audits, and subsequent classification of non-compliance and remedial action, are shown below. These have largely remained the same over the past 3 years. Some Areas where non-compliances were identified: • ESOS Energy Audits did not meet minimum criteria stated in Regulations/Guidance • Lead Assessor and or Board Director Sign off missing • Sampling Approach not representative of Significant Energy Consumption (SEC) • Moved Premises between qual. & comp. date so thought no need for energy audits • Process energy consumption omitted • Omitted transport consumption when a significant part of Total Energy Consumption (TEC)
Apart from the common mistakes that the audits have identified amongst the participating companies, one of the main concerns raised also was the lack of consistency amongst the ESOS reports. To reflect on the EA’s compliance audits’ outcomes from a different angle – the issued financial penalties. It has recently been announced that the Environment Agency have taken the actions against ESOS Phase 1 non-compliant companies and issued 27 Civil Penalties till the end of March 2019, 11 out of the 27 penalties were issued in March 2019, and there are 8 organisations that are still under review. The penalties varied from £1,000 to £45,000 and in total penalties amounting to over £250,000 were issued. So, will the ESOS Phase 2 be any different? The EMA, as one of the ESOS Lead Assessor Registers, questioned ESOS Lead Assessors on their views ahead of the Phase 2.
In your opinion, what improvements can be made to the standard of ESOS assessments?
Areas where remedial actions where identified: Organisational Structure
ESOS energy audit data records
TEC reference period
Sampling approach
TEC data records
ESOS energy audit analysis
Calculations to support estimates (TEC and audits)
Extrapolation of energy savings to non-visited sites
Conversion factors
Cost benefit analysis
Errors in TEC and SEC
Alternative compliance route certification
Board Director sign off
Lead Assessor sign off
In-house Lead Assessors’ views “We have approached ESOS and the assessment as an opportunity to take a large, detailed and structured step forward on energy performance in our operations. However, feedback within the industry indicates that many assessments from other organisations were essentially a rush to get the box ticked for compliance and very little has been implemented since.
THE EMA MAGAZINE • ISSUE MAY—JUNE 2019
It said, if you are selected for a Phase 1 compliance audit, but your Phase 2 ESOS assessment is near completion, respond to the EA’s audit selection email advising them of your position, as they may be able to audit your Phase 2 ESOS assessment instead.
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