Energy-efficient and up-to-date

In the interest of protecting the climate and the environment, the European Union has followed this idea and developed different ideas and approaches in recent years.

As a result of the implementation of the European Energy Efficiency Directive into German legislation, more and more companies now find themselves facing its consequences at the national level.

Important innovations: Mandatory energy audits

According to the new law, all companies that are not small and medium-sized are obliged to carry out an energy audit according to DIN EN 16247-1 in the short term until December 5, 2015. This means that it is necessary to systematically check and analyze the energy consumption and energy consumption of the company to identify energy flows and the potential for improving energy efficiency.

Our expert teams of technical and environmental consultancy consisting of a combination of engineers, scientists, lawyers, auditors, and of course energy consultants support you in carrying out these energy audits, which must be carried out by qualified experts.

Who has this obligation?

Based on the will of the legislator, all 'non-SMEs' are subject to audit.

The definition for determining non-SME is:

"Companies with 250 or more employees, or with less than 250 employees, but with more than EUR 50 million in annual business volume or more than EUR 43 million in annual balance."

Affected businesses include not only large manufacturing companies but also hospitals, retailers, service companies, banks, insurance companies, and all other non-manufacturing companies. Further restrictions have not been defined so far. According to the German federal government, the obligation to perform regular energy audits will affect around 94,000 companies that will be randomly audited by the German Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control.

In case the company is not sure whether it is subject to the obligation to perform the audit as a non-SME, our experts at BDO Legal are the right person to contact. An accurate assessment of whether a company belongs to the affected 'non-SME' group can be quickly checked within the quick check.

Determining SME status through a quick check offers businesses some additional benefits. For example, SMEs can apply for grants from the European Union, while non-SMEs can apply to development banks for subsidies and capital investment grants.

Additional energy-saving options

Operational CO2 emissions are used as metrics and control factors to visualize the CO2 footprint or corporate carbon footprint (CCF) of the business. Numerical simulation of this is the basis of entrepreneurial climate protection. BDO TUC engineers perform these simulations following international standards such as the Greenhouse Gas Protocol or ISO standard 14064.

Based on the corporate carbon footprint, specific energy efficiency measures can be identified and integrated into a tailored climate protection strategy. As a result, a measurable reduction in CO2 emissions related to the business can be achieved.

For energy and waste management companies, technical reviews regarding the provisions of the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) are important considerations. Auditor and engineer reviews help optimize compensation claims and EEG settlements in terms of time. Technical and economic assessment of the task avoids interface losses and ensures improved quality control.