COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT Guidance note on Directive 2012/27/EU on energy efficiency, amending Directives 2009/125/EC and 2010/30/EC, and repealing Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC Article 8: Energy audits and energy management systems  Accompanying the document COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Implementing the Energy Efficiency Directive – Commission Guidance
Date: 2013-11-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: application of EU law, audit, building, building insulation, energy consumption, energy efficiency, energy saving, energy use













EUR-Lex - 52013SC0447 - EN











|



52013SC0447

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT Guidance note on Directive 2012/27/EU on energy efficiency, amending Directives 2009/125/EC and 2010/30/EC, and repealing Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC Article 8: Energy audits and energy management systems  Accompanying the document COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Implementing the Energy Efficiency Directive – Commission Guidance /* SWD/2013/0447 final */









Table of
contents
A.    Introduction.. 2
B.    Legal and policy context. 3
C.    Obligation to promote the general availability
of energy audits. 5
D.    Specific obligation for large enterprises to
carry out regular energy audits  6
E.    Ensuring high-quality audits. 9
F.    Training programmes for the qualification of
energy auditors and availability of qualification, accreditation and
certification schemes. 13
G.    Obligations to develop programmes to encourage
SMEs to undergo energy audits and to raise awareness among households. 14
H.    National support schemes. 14
Article 8: Energy Audits and Energy Management
Systems
A.    
Introduction
1.                 
An
'energy audit' means a systematic procedure with the purpose of
obtaining adequate knowledge of the energy consumption profile of a building or
group of buildings, an industrial or commercial operation or installation or a
private or public service, identifying and quantifying cost-effective energy
saving opportunities, and reporting the findings; (see corresponding definition
in Article 2(25)).
2.                 
Energy
audits are an essential tool to achieve energy savings. They are necessary to
assess the existing energy consumption and identify the whole range of
opportunities to save energy. This should then result in proposals of concrete
saving measures for the management, public authorities or home owners. 
Furthermore, energy audits allow the identification and prioritization or
ranking of opportunities for improvement. In this way, energy audits tackle the
information gap that is one of the main barriers to energy efficiency. 
3.                 
Through
the identification of energy saving possibilities and proposed recommendations
for follow-up, audits are also the basis for the development of a market for
energy services. The result of an energy audit may be, for example, a
recommendation for window replacement in a household, for insulation of piping
in a factory or for setting up a comprehensive energy management system in
commercial buildings, among other recommendations. Furthermore, energy audits
are not only centred on technical solutions such as replacements or retrofits,
as significant opportunities for improvement may also exist in connection to
the operation, both industrial and commercial, for example the more efficient
operation and continual optimization of operating procedures, control
parameters, logistic and layout optimization and maintenance planning. Energy
audits may also be part of a broader environmental audit that considers storage
possibilities, connection to district heating and cooling networks or potential
for demand response in industries and commercial buildings. A private or public
service, e.g. city public transport system, may also be subject to an energy
audit that results in the identification of cost-effective energy saving
opportunities.
4.                 
Having
an energy management system in place requires enterprises to carry out detailed
energy review processes, which also result in the systematic identification and
reporting of energy saving opportunities. This may also be the case for
enterprises implementing environmental management systems.
5.                 
Article
8 of Directive 2012/27/EU of 25 October 2012 on energy efficiency[1] (the Energy
Efficiency Directive – hereafter also 'the EED' or 'the Directive') requires
Member States to comply with the following main obligations:
a)      Promote the
availability of high quality and cost-effective energy audits to all final
customers, fulfilling minimum criteria based on Annex VI and carried out by
qualified and/or accredited experts or supervised by independent authorities ;
b)      Ensure
mandatory and regular audits for large enterprises fulfilling minimum criteria
based on Annex VI and carried out by qualified and/or accredited experts or
supervised by independent authorities;
c)      Establish
transparent and non-discriminatory minimum criteria for energy audits, based on
Annex VI of the Directive; 
d)      Establish in
national legislation requirements for energy auditors, and for supervision by
national authorities, 
e)      Ensure the
development of programmes to encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to
undergo energy audits and to implement the recommendations from these audits;
and
f)       
Ensure
the development of programmes to raise awareness among households about the
benefits of energy audits. 
The
Article gives scope for the provision of incentives for the implementation of
recommended measures.
B.     Legal and policy context
6.                 
Obligations
for Member States in relation to energy audits already existed in the Energy
Services Directive ('the ESD')[2]
but under the EED their obligatory nature is stronger, and audits are made
compulsory for large enterprises. Provisions on qualification of experts,
independent control systems and quality assurance and energy performance
certificates also exist in Directive 2010/31/EU on the energy performance of
buildings (recast of the earlier Directive 2002/91/EC, hereinafter ‘the EPBD’)[3]. The
relationship between these is explained below.
7.                 
Article
8(1) and Article 8(4) of the Directive establish the two main obligations for
Member States to promote the availability of energy audits and to ensure that
large enterprises carry out regular energy audits. Whilst the obligation for
large enterprises to carry out regular energy audits is new, an obligation for
Member States to ensure the availability of efficient high-quality energy audit
schemes, which are carried out in an independent manner, to all final
consumers, including smaller domestic, commercial and small and medium-sized
industrial customers was already established in similar terms in Article 12 of the
ESD. In cases where energy audits were not commercially available for certain
market segments, such as households, Member States had the obligation to ensure
the availability of such audits. The EED also introduces additional expertise
and supervision requirements for energy audits and an obligation for Member
States to ensure the development of programmes to encourage SMEs to undergo
energy audits and to raise awareness among households. Article 12(3) of the ESD
specified that audits resulting from schemes based on voluntary agreements
between organisations of stakeholders and an appointed body, by the Member
States concerned in accordance with Article 6(2)(b) of the ESD, were to be
considered as having fulfilled the requirements for Member States to ensure the
availability of energy audits. Article 8(2) and 8(5) of the EED maintain the
possibility for Member States to conclude voluntary agreements for the
implementation of energy audits, both in SMEs and in large enterprises.
8.                 
Article
11 of the EPBD imposes the obligation on Member States to establish a system of
certification of the energy performance of buildings. This makes it possible
for owners or tenants of a building to assess its energy performance and
compare it with others. According to Article 12 of the ESD, certification in
accordance with Article 7 of Directive 2002/91/EC on the energy performance of
buildings[4]
must be regarded as equivalent to an energy audit meeting the requirements set
out in Article 12(1) and (2) of the ESD. However, in recognition of the wider
scope of energy audits under Article 8 of the EED, the EED no longer keeps this
equivalence.
9.                 
Therefore,
energy performance certification in accordance with Article 11 of the EPBD, and
inspections in accordance with its Articles 14 and/or 15, cannot automatically
be regarded as equivalent to energy audits under Article 8 of the EED (which
are e.g. based on measured data on energy consumption and load profiles for
electricity, examine - where applicable - industrial operations or installations,
including transportation, and allow detailed and validated calculations to
provide information on potential savings). However, it is possible that in
specific cases (for instance when auditing office buildings of a large
enterprise) certification and/or inspections under the EPBD in a given Member State may fulfil the requirements of Article 8 and Annex VI of the EED.
10.             
Article
8 of the ESD establishes that Member States must ensure, where they deem it
necessary, the availability of appropriate qualification, accreditation and/or
certification schemes for the providers of energy audits. Complementing the
provisions of Article 8, Article 16 of the EED on the availability of
qualification, accreditation and certification schemes establishes that where a
Member State considers that the national level of technical competence,
objectivity and reliability is insufficient, the Member State must ensure that,
by 31 December 2014, certification and/or accreditation schemes and/or
equivalent qualification schemes, including, where necessary, suitable training
programmes, are available for the providers of energy audits.
11.             
Certification
aspects are also part of the EPBD. Its Article 17 establishes that Member
States must ensure that the energy performance certification of buildings and
the inspection of heating systems and air-conditioning systems are carried out
in an independent manner by qualified and/or accredited experts, whether
operating in a self-employed capacity or employed by public bodies or private
enterprises. Experts must be accredited taking into account their competence.
This Article requires that Member States must make available to the public
information on training and accreditation. Member States must ensure that
regularly updated lists of accredited companies which offer the services of
such experts are made available to the public. Similarly, under Article 17(1)
of the EED on information and training, Member States must ensure that
information on available energy efficiency mechanisms and financial and legal
frameworks is widely disseminated to all relevant market actors such as
consumers or environmental and energy auditors. 
12.             
Where
it is relevant, the Commission services encourage Member States to explore
synergies between the transposition and implementation of Article 8 of the
Energy Efficiency Directive and of the implementation of the EPBD (in
particular Articles 17 and 18[5]),
especially as regards the national supervisory authorities set up under
national legislation to make sure that energy audits are cost effective and
carried out in an independent and cost-effective manner by qualified and/or
accredited experts according to certain qualification criteria or implemented
and supervised by independent authorities under national legislation. These
qualification criteria may nevertheless differ substantially given that the
scope of energy audits under the EED is wider than the certification of
buildings under the EPBD. In particular, the focus of energy audits under the
EED – even for buildings and households – goes beyond the technical
characteristics of the buildings and includes e.g. all electricity uses and
behavioural changes such as impact of occupant activity on energy consumption. 
13.             
The
Commission services equally encourage Member States to explore synergies and
ensure consistency between the qualification/certification criteria and schemes
of the EED and the EPBD when transposing and implementing their legal
provisions. Accordingly, qualified energy auditors in the framework of the EED could
be recognised as qualified experts to deliver EPCs in buildings. Furthermore,
qualified experts to deliver EPCs in buildings could be targeted for training
to become qualified energy auditors.
14.             
This
note aims to provide guidance to Member States on how to apply Article 8 of the
EED. It states the views of the Commission, does not alter the legal effects of
the Directive and is without prejudice to the binding interpretation of Article
8 as provided by the Court of Justice.
C.    
Obligation to promote the general availability of
energy audits
15.             
Under
Article 8(1) of the EED, Member States must promote the availability to all
final customers of high quality energy audits which are cost effective and (a)
carried out in an independent manner by qualified and/or accredited experts
according to qualification criteria; or (b) implemented and supervised by
independent authorities under national legislation. These criteria
(cost-effective, undertaken by qualified/accredited experts and supervised by
independent authorities) have to be applied to energy audits promoted by Member
States' programmes - e.g. information campaigns or other support actions - and
to those referred to under Article 8(4) (see section D1). As a consequence,
Member States have to ensure that energy audits become available to all final
customers and check that they fulfil the above-mentioned criteria. Article 8(1)
does not impose a specific obligation to carry out energy audits.
16.             
Energy
audits must be carried out by either "qualified" or
"accredited" experts. Accreditation is a public authority activity
that ensures the continuous control of the technical competence of conformity
assessment bodies. It ensures that audits carried out by experts meet the
requirements of Annex VI of the EED. While there is a possibility to have
qualified experts, it may be more difficult to demonstrate their competence
through qualification schemes rather than accreditation. Regulation 765/2008[6] provides the
EU definition of “accreditation”. It should be noted, however, that
accreditation according to Regulation 765/2008 is normally provided to legal
rather than natural persons. Qualification should therefore rather apply to
those cases where an individual aims to become active as an expert.[7]  
17.             
Article
8(1) refers to promoting the availability to 'all final customers' of
high quality energy audits. 'Final customer' is defined in Article 2(23), and
means a natural or legal person who purchases energy for own end use.
18.             
Energy
audits must not include clauses preventing the findings of the audit from being
transferred (on condition that the customer does not object) to any
qualified/accredited energy service provider. Energy audits referred to under
Article 8(1) of the EED must be compliant with relevant data protection legislation,
and in particular with Directive 95/46/EC[8].

D.   
Specific obligation for large enterprises to carry
out regular energy audits
D1.       Scope of the obligation
19.             
Under
Article 8(4), Member States must ensure that large enterprises ('that are
not SMEs') carry out regular energy audits. Article 8(4) does not exclude
any sector (for example Emissions Trading Systems – ETS – sectors or Integrated
Pollution Prevention and Control – IPPC – licence holders). To be able to
ensure that large enterprises fulfil the obligations established in Article
8(4), Member States have to identify the enterprises that fall under this
obligation. 
20.             
When
establishing the scope of this obligation, Member States must follow the
definition of the category of 'small and medium-sized enterprises' or 'SMEs'
in Article 2(26) of the Directive. According to this definition, SMEs are 'enterprises
as defined in Title I of the Annex to Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of
6 May 2003; the category of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises is made
up of enterprises which employ fewer than 250 persons and which have an annual
turnover not exceeding EUR 50 million, and/or an annual balance sheet total not
exceeding EUR 43 million'[9].
This harmonised definition allows consistent requirements for companies
operating in different EU Member States.
21.             
In
order to be an SME an undertaking must first fall within the definition of
'enterprise', which is 'any entity engaged in an economic activity,
irrespective of its legal form'. Any activity whereby goods and services
are offered on a given market is an economic activity[10]. It
is important to underline that the definition of SMEs in Article 2(26) does not
refer to energy intensity or to energy consumption and that the definition, as
a provision of a Directive, is fully legally binding.[11]
22.             
It
follows from the definition that the number of employees is the main criterion
for determining whether an enterprise is an SME. The headcount is accompanied
by a financial criterion, either turnover or balance sheet total. A SME does
not need to satisfy both financial criteria. 
23.             
In
line with Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC concerning the definition of
micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, national labour rules apply as
regards the definition of 'employees'. Apprentices and students with vocational
training contracts should not be counted, nor should employees away on
maternity or parental leave. 
24.             
According
to this Recommendation, enterprises can use the data contained in their last
approved annual accounts to make the staff and financial calculations. To
calculate their data, enterprises registered in a given country have to
establish whether they are autonomous, partner or linked enterprises[12].
Enterprises need to include the data of other related enterprises in other
countries (including outside the EU) to assess whether they can be considered
to be an SME or not. An enterprise that holds over 25% of capital or voting
rights in another enterprise, or vice versa 25% of its capital or voting rights
are held by a different enterprise, is a partner or linked enterprise. That
means that the number of staff, turnover and/or balance sheet of the
enterprises must be added together to see if they are below the SME threshold.
It is still possible for two small linked enterprises to be SMEs. In general,
most SMEs are autonomous since they are either completely independent or have
one or more minority partnerships (each less than 25% with other enterprises).
If an enterprise is autonomous, it needs to use only the number of employees
and the financial data contained in its annual accounts to check if it respects
the thresholds mentioned in point 20 above.
25.             
As
a result, small branches in one Member State may need to carry out an energy
audit every four years because they do not fall within the definition of SME
and therefore come within the category of large enterprises. This should not be
considered as an extra burden or disproportionate[13] because on
the one hand such enterprises may well be implementing energy management
systems (see section D2) or may have arrangements whereby the branch could be
helped with the audit, for example by in house experts from the parent company;
and on the other hand, because the energy audit in question is likely to have a
more limited scope and cost. 
26.             
The
existence of a list of large enterprises may serve several purposes and help
make such companies aware of their obligations under the EED. In some Member
States, a register of enterprises that are not SMEs already exists. There are
several other tools that Member States could consider using to know how many
and which enterprises fall under the scope of the audit obligation on large
enterprises. Both Eurostat and often national statistic offices have some
analysis (at least total numbers) by enterprise size class, differentiating
between large and SMEs in line with the EU harmonised definition of SME. Member
States could consider using national obligations that enterprises submit
consolidated accounts in line with the financial reporting legislation in the
EU established in the 1970s and 1980s[14]
as an indication of an enterprise's status (as a large enterprise). This
legislation has been amended in line with the harmonised EU definition of SME
of 2006. In addition, stock exchange offices usually operate public registries
of companies by sector and by size. Member States may also consider
establishing other reporting mechanisms for large enterprises to report on
compliance. 
27.             
It
follows from Article 8(4) that enterprises other than SMEs must carry out a first
energy audit, in a form that fulfils the requirements of Article 8(4), between
the date of entry into force (4 December 2012) and, at the latest, 5 December
2015. Then, according to the maximum four-year interval, if the first energy
audit took place, for example, on 15 January 2013, the next one must happen at
the latest four years later (before 15 January 2017 in this example).
28.             
Large
enterprises that have carried out more than one energy audit before 5 December
2015 have flexibility to assess which audit is to be counted as the first one
for the purposes of the Directive, provided that the energy audit in question
fulfils the national minimum criteria for energy audits based on Annex VI. 
D2.      Exemptions
29.             
Article
8(6) provides exemptions to the obligation for large enterprises to carry out
regular energy audits, when those enterprises are implementing an energy or
environmental management system ‘certified by an independent body according
to the relevant European or International Standards’. The definition of
‘energy management system’ is provided in Article 2(11) whereby it ‘means a
set of interrelated or interacting elements of a plan which sets an energy
efficiency objective and a strategy to achieve that objective'. In the
context of Article 8(6), the exemption from the audit obligation for large
enterprises refers specifically to formalised energy management systems
complying with relevant European and International Standards. This does not
preclude that this independent body may be accredited by a national
accreditation body according to Regulation 765/2008 which attests its technical
competence to carry out its tasks. 
30.             
Typically,
when a large company has in place an energy management system, a continuous
energy review process is carried out to control and reduce energy use. The
result of this process of detailed review of the energy consumption profile and
identification of opportunities for energy saving is equivalent to that of
discrete, regular energy audits. In addition, separate energy audits (with the
same scope as the energy management system or with a narrower scope e.g.
covering individual sites, buildings or processes) may also be carried out to
support the implementation of the energy management system. For these reasons,
enterprises that are implementing an energy or environmental management system
– certified by an independent body according to the relevant European and
International Standards – are considered to satisfy the energy audit
requirement of Article 8(4) in terms of results and are therefore exempted from
this obligation. 
31.             
In
order for this exemption to apply the Member States must ensure that the
management system concerned includes an energy audit on the basis of minimum
criteria set out in Annex VI. In practice, this requires in the first place
identifying the management system in question and the standard that it follows.
Subsequently, the certification status of the management system and of the
certification body (or for self-certification where applicable) needs to be checked
to make sure that the implementation of the management system fulfils the
requirements described in the following section (E2). 
32.             
Experience
so far has shown that in many Member States energy audits and energy management
systems are promoted through voluntary agreement programmes (sometimes referred
to as branch contracts, programmes or sector plans). The most widespread are
voluntary agreements in the industrial sector. In fact, for some of these
programmes, implementing an energy management system is a prerequisite for
participation in a voluntary agreement scheme. This is recognised in Article
8(5) of the Directive, which states that large enterprises implementing energy
audits under voluntary agreements concluded between organisations of stakeholders
and an appointed body and supervised by the Member State concerned, or other
bodies to which the competent authorities have delegated the responsibility
concerned, or by the Commission, are considered as fulfilling the requirements
of Article 8(4). 
D3.      Penalties

33.             
Because
the transposition of Article 8 requires Member States to impose obligations on
third parties, Member States are required to lay down rules on penalties
applicable in case of non-compliance with the national provisions adopted
pursuant to this Article (see Article 13). These penalties must be ‘effective,
proportionate and dissuasive’ and must be notified to the Commission within
18 months of the coming into force of the Directive. 
E.     Ensuring high-quality audits
E1.       Expertise, including the use of
in-house experts or energy auditors, and national supervision
34.             
The
criteria of expertise and national supervision for the energy audits under
Article 8(4) are identical to those of Article 8(1) described in point 15
above. In other words the same criteria apply when large enterprises fulfil
their energy audit obligations and when Member States promote the use of energy
audits. Accordingly, Article 8(4) requires Member States to ensure that
enterprises that are not SMEs are 'subject to an energy audit carried out in
an independent and cost-effective manner by qualified and/or accredited experts
or implemented and supervised by independent authorities under national
legislation by 5 December 2015 and at least every four years from the date of
the previous energy audit'. 
35.             
The
possibility for in-house experts or energy auditors to carry out energy audits
only applies for those subject to the strict criteria named in 8(1) and 8(4), i.e.
carried out in an independent and cost-effective manner by qualified and/or
accredited experts or implemented or supervised by independent authorities
under national legislation. The condition for in-house experts or energy
auditors to carry out energy audits is that the Member State concerned has put
in place a scheme to assure and check their quality, including, if appropriate,
an annual random selection of at least a statistically significant percentage
of all the energy audits they carry out (Article 8(1)). The national scheme for
checking the quality of in-house experts or energy auditors can be the same as
for external ones. Where energy audits are carried out by in-house experts, the
necessary independence would require these experts not to be directly engaged
in the activity audited (recital 25).
E2.
      Minimum criteria to be fulfilled
36.             
For
the purpose of guaranteeing the high quality of the energy audit and energy
management systems, Member States must establish transparent and
non-discriminatory minimum criteria for energy audits based on Annex VI on 'Minimum
criteria for energy audits including those carried out as part of energy
management systems'. 
37.             
The
national minimum criteria to be established on the basis of Annex VI apply to
energy audits promoted by the Member States under Article 8(1) and mandatory
audits by large enterprises under Article 8(4). As mentioned before, these
audits also need to satisfy the strict criteria for expertise and national
supervision (see previous section). The respect of national minimum criteria on
the basis of Annex VI and of strict criteria for expertise and national
supervision apply equally to Articles 8(5) and 8(6) as they provide for
exemptions and for equivalent requirements to those established in Article
8(4), i.e. regular energy audits for large enterprises. Other energy audits
that may be implemented in the Member States and that are not promoted by
Member States and not implemented by large enterprises to fulfil the mandatory
requirement are not subject to these strict requirements. 
38.             
In
line with recital 24, the minimum criteria in Annex VI are not more far
reaching than the requirements of the relevant European or International
Standards. It follows from the wording of this recital that energy audits
should take into account relevant European or International Standards, such as,
for example, EN ISO 50001 (Energy Management Systems), or EN 16247-1 (Energy
Audits)[15],
or, if including an energy audit, EN ISO 14001 (Environmental Management
Systems).
39.             
These
standards can provide useful guidance in developing national minimum criteria
on the basis of Annex VI. Furthermore, EN 16247-1 was developed specifically in
the context of the former Energy Services Directive and could be applied as a
consistent tool as part of a wider management system (e.g. EN ISO 50001 or EN
ISO 14000). There is a new ISO International Standard 50002 under development
setting standards for conducting an energy audit. It should be noted that
although reference is made to both ISO 50001 and ISO 14000, ISO 50001 targets
specifically energy consumption, whilst ISO 14000 focuses more generally on
environmental improvements. The consideration of European or International
Standards is useful towards creating a level playing field for enterprises with
activities in several Member States.
40.             
Annex
VI establishes the guidelines on which the energy audits referred to in Article
8 must be based, in practice giving requirements for the thoroughness and
content of the energy audit reports. The minimum criteria in Annex VI include
guidelines on the data to be used, the depth and scope of the audit, the
recommended cost analysis and the quality requirements in terms of
representativeness of the energy audits referred to in Article 8.
41.             
These
guidelines consist of six elements or criteria which should be examined in each
case and which should each be incorporated in some way in the minimum criteria
to be established at national level. On the basis of Annex VI, national minimum
criteria need to make clear that energy audits must be based on up-to-date data
on energy consumption and comprise a detailed review of the energy consumption
profile, building whenever possible on life-cycle cost analysis. Energy audits
must allow the reliable identification of the most significant opportunities
for improvement in energy efficiency, permitting detailed calculations for the
proposed measures. The data used in energy audits must allow performance to be
tracked. The resulting national minimum criteria should therefore lead to quite
comprehensive and thorough energy audits.
42.             
Member
States may add additional elements when developing criteria based on Annex VI.
They may also indicate in which circumstances a particular part of the six
elements or criteria would be most relevant (e.g. life-cycle cost analysis).
Member States through their national minimum criteria may tailor the needs for
different segments where they promote energy audits, for instance to SMEs (for
whom a detailed audit may not be cost-effective), a public service (e.g. a city
public transport service) or households.
43.             
The
first guideline in Annex VI (a) is that energy audits must be based on up-to
date, measured, traceable operational data on energy consumption and, in the
case of electricity, load profiles. These data are needed to analyse energy
performance of the audited object.
44.             
Annex
VI (b) states that energy audits must comprise a detailed review of the energy
consumption profile of buildings or groups of buildings, industrial operations
or installations, including transportation. Such detailed review allows
building the data needed to identify energy performance improvements
opportunities.
45.             
The
guideline for energy audits in Annex VI(c) is to build, whenever possible, on
life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA[16])
instead of Simple Payback Periods (SPP)[17] in order to take account of long-term
savings, residual values of long-term investments and discount rates. This is
particularly relevant in cases where audits need to be of such quality that
investment decisions can be based on them. For example in the residential
sector, it is increasingly common to link support under financial instruments
to carrying out an energy audit as a starting point for energy efficiency
projects. The inclusion of additional financial indicators such as Discounted
Payback, Internal Rate of Return or Return on Investment is helps building
confidence of investors and getting access to funding[18]. 
46.             
Annex
VI(d) states that energy audits must be sufficiently representative to permit
the drawing of a reliable picture of overall energy performance and the
reliable identification of the most significant opportunities of improvement.
Therefore, national minimum criteria based on Annex VI must make clear that all
energy related aspects listed in point (b) (buildings or groups of buildings,
industrial operations or installations, including transportation) must be
systematically screened. According to this screening, the scope and boundaries
(i.e. physical or site limits, extent of activities or facilities
addressed) of each energy audit and the degree of thoroughness needed for
drawing up the required reliable assessment are to be defined on a case by case
basis. 
47.             
Examples
of possible scopes are the whole site of an enterprise and all energy using
systems or the boiler plant, one or more production lines or the offices, the
vehicle fleet or the on-site transportation. Different levels of detail are
also possible, depending for instance on whether accuracy sufficient for
investment decisions is needed, or whether it is necessary to visit a
proportion of similar sites of the same company. The obligation for large
enterprises to carry out an energy audit at least every four years is not in
contradiction with carrying out audits with narrower scopes over a period of
time and within the four year periodicity of the audit requirement. Consideration
could be given for example to planning energy audits for different sites or
focusing first on processes and later on office buildings, with different
timeframes within the four-year cycle.
48.             
The
flexibility to adjust both the scope and boundaries and the level of detail
must not contradict the requirement to make a representative assessment of the
overall energy performance and to identify and prioritise energy saving
opportunities. For instance, it would not be justifiable for an enterprise for
which the transportation aspects of its operations are the main user of energy
not to include this in the scope of the energy audit.  On the other hand, the
energy audit of a given enterprise is not expected to assess the energy use of
its transport service providers (if these come from a different enterprise).
The specific European Standard dealing with the transport aspects of energy
audits may provide useful guidance in this regard. This Standard applies both
to operators exclusively dedicated to transport and to public or private
companies with some transport operations.  
49.             
Annex
VI also indicates that the energy audits referred to in Article 8 must allow
detailed and validated calculations to provide clear information on potential
savings. The data used in energy audits must be storable for historical
analysis. This means that relevant data, used or produced during the audit
work, must be presented in the energy audit reports in a form that can be used
for e.g. programme level monitoring purposes.
50.             
When
developing national minimum criteria for energy audits, European or
international standards may in particular provide useful guidance for the
definition of the scope and level of detail of an energy audit. For example
standards can provide guidance for the assessment of levels of detail that an
energy audit may require, tailored to the subject of the audit (i.e. building
or group of buildings, an industrial or commercial operation or installation or
a private or public service) and with sufficient flexibility to adapt to
particular circumstances. Furthermore, standards may provide useful guidance
for the planning of the audit, data collection, specific checklists to evaluate
actual energy performance (e.g. in industrial processes, in buildings), typical
energy and financial saving opportunities or the content of the audit report.
European or international standards also provide examples of how to strike the
right balance between the scope and thoroughness of an energy audit.
51.             
Energy
audits may stand alone or be part of a broader environmental audit. Member
States may require that an assessment of the technical and economic feasibility
of connection to an existing or planned district heating or cooling network
must be part of the energy audit. To identify the full scope of energy saving
options, energy audits may also consider storage possibilities or potential for
demand response in industries and commercial buildings. 
F.     
Training programmes for the qualification of energy
auditors and availability of qualification, accreditation and certification
schemes
52.             
A
sufficient number of reliable professionals competent in the field of energy
efficiency should be available to ensure the effective and timely
implementation of and compliance with the requirements of the Directive on
energy audits. For this purpose, Member States are required to encourage
training programmes for the qualification of energy auditors (Article 8(3)). 
53.             
Member
States should put in place certification schemes for the providers of energy
audits to make sure that a sufficient number of reliable professionals be
available (see recital 46).
54.             
To
further reinforce the availability of qualified experts, in accordance with
Article 16 on  availability of qualification, accreditation and certification
schemes, where a Member State considers that the national level of technical
competence, objectivity and reliability is insufficient, the Member State must
ensure that, by 31 December 2014, certification and/or accreditation schemes
and/or equivalent qualification schemes, including, where necessary, suitable
training programmes, become available for the providers of energy audits.
Member States have discretion as to how to assess the national level of
technical competence, objectivity and reliability, but if this is considered to
be insufficient the previously mentioned actions must be taken before 31
December 2014. 
Member
States must ensure that qualification, accreditation and certification schemes
provide transparency to consumers, are reliable and contribute to national
energy efficiency objectives. Member States must take appropriate measures to
make consumers aware of the availability of qualification and/or certification
schemes. They must make publicly available the certification and/or
accreditation schemes or equivalent qualification schemes and must cooperate
among themselves and with the Commission on comparisons between, and
recognition of, the schemes. The latter is important to address the sometimes
diverse qualification criteria and respective quality control schemes across
Member States. Moving in the direction of mutual recognition of schemes would
open the European market for energy auditors. In this respect, a European-wide
accreditation scheme that ensures the quality of audits may eventually be
envisaged.
55.             
Under
Article 17(1) on information and training, Member States must ensure that
information on available energy efficiency mechanisms and financial and legal
frameworks is widely disseminated to all relevant market actors such as
consumers or environmental and energy auditors.
G.   
Obligations to develop programmes to encourage SMEs
to undergo energy audits and to raise awareness among households
56.             
Article
8(2) of the Directive establishes that Member States must develop programmes to
encourage SMEs to undergo energy audits and the subsequent implementation of
the recommendations from these audits. 
57.             
SMEs
represent enormous energy saving potential for the Union. To encourage them to
adopt energy efficiency measures, Member States should establish a favourable
framework aimed at providing SMEs with technical assistance and targeted
information (see recital 41).
58.             
Member
States must bring to the attention of SMEs, including through their respective
representative organisations, concrete examples of how energy management
systems could help their businesses. The Commission must assist Member States
by supporting the exchange of best practices in this domain. 
59.             
Member
States must also (Article 8(3)) develop programmes to raise awareness among
households of the benefits of energy audits through appropriate counselling or
advice services. Articles 8(2) and 8(3) do not impose a specific obligation to
carry out energy audits.
H.   
National support schemes
60.             
Article
8 requires Member States to actively promote the availability and the use of
energy audits and the implementation of their recommendations. The scope of
national promotion activities covers a wide range of areas. Compulsory measures
that Member States must take include encouraging training programmes for auditors
(Article 8(3)); programmes encouraging SMEs to undergo energy audits and the
subsequent implementation of the recommendations from these audits (Article
8(2)); programmes to raise awareness among SME (Article 8(2)) and households
(Article 8(3)). The national promotion programmes may be or may encompass
support schemes, including State aid. The Article explicitly allows the setting
up of support schemes for SMEs to carry out and implement energy audits.
Article 8(2) reads: '[…] On the basis of transparent and non-discriminatory
criteria and without prejudice to Union State aid law, Member States may set up
support schemes for SMEs, including if they have concluded voluntary
agreements, to cover costs of an energy audit and of the implementation of highly
cost-effective recommendations from the energy audits, if the proposed measures
are implemented […]'.
61.             
Likewise,
Member States are explicitly allowed to set up incentives and support schemes
for enterprises, including non-SME enterprises, to implement the
recommendations of energy audits and similar measures. Similar measures are
energy or environmental management systems implemented either stand alone or
under a Voluntary Agreement, and having equivalence with energy audits. Article
8(7) reads: '[…] Without prejudice to Union State aid law, Member States may
implement incentive and support schemes for the implementation of
recommendations from energy audits and similar measures'.  Support schemes,
when they contain State aid elements, should be without prejudice to the Union State aid law. This includes the Community Guidelines on State Aid for Environmental
Protection[19]
and the Block Exemption Regulations[20].
62.             
Article
8 makes the promotion of audits an important objective and creates a framework
to overcome the market barriers and failures[21] that impede the implementation of energy
audits or equivalent energy management systems and the implementation their
results. It specifically allows support measures to overcome barriers such as
lack of awareness and expertise among households and SMEs, the low number of
trained professionals and high initials costs of implementation without which
audits would not be carried out and implemented on the scale required. 
[1] Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 25 October 2012 on energy efficiency, amending Directives 2009/125/EC and
2012/30/EU and repealing Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC, OJ L 315,
14.11.2012, p.1.
[2] Directive 2006/32/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 5 April 2006 on energy end-use efficiency and energy services, OJ L 114,
27.4.2006, p.64.
[3] Directive 2010/31/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 19 May 2010 on the energy performance of buildings (recast), OJ L 153,
18.6.2010, p.13.
[4] Directive 2002/91/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2002on the energy performance of
buildings, OJ L1, 4.1.2003, p.65.
[5] These articles include provisions on independent experts and
independent control system, respectively.
[6] Regulation (EC) No. 765/2008 defines 'accreditation' as 'an
attestation by a national accreditation body that a conformity assessment body
meets the requirements set by harmonised standards and, where applicable, any
additional requirements including those set out in relevant sectoral schemes,
to carry out a specific conformity assessment activity'.
[7] EMAS (Community eco-management and audit scheme) is an exception to
this case and allows for the accreditation of natural persons. 
[8] Directive 95/46 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24
October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of
personal data and on the free movement of such data, OJ L281, 23/11/1995, p.
31.
[9] See Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of 6 May 2003, OJ L 124,
20.5.2003, p.36. 
[10] Case 118/85 Commission v Italy [1987] ECR 2599, paragraph 7; Case C-35/96 Commission v Italy [1998] ECR I-3851, CNSD,
paragraph 36), C-309/99 Wouters [2002]
ECR I-1577, paragraph 46. 
[11] Note that Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of May 2003 forms
part of the legal ‘acquis’ in other areas of EU law, for instance the
definition of SME contained in this Recommendation is included in the Annex to
the General Block Exemption Regulation, Commission Regulation 800/2008.
[12] In general, most SMEs are autonomous since they are either
completely independent or have one or more minority partnerships (each less
than 25%) with other enterprises. If that holding rises to no more than 50%,
the relationship is deemed to be between partner enterprises. Above that
ceiling the enterprises are linked.
[13] Annex VI(d) requires energy audits to be '‘proportionate'‘. The
principle of proportionality implies testing that a legislative or
administrative measure or means is appropriate and necessary in order to reach
or achieve a given goal or objective. The Court of Justice of the European
Union applies the proportionality principle when it balances legislative
measures against private interests, individual rights and fundamental freedoms.
[14] See in particular the so-called 4th Company Law
Directive on annual accounts (Directive 78/660/EEC) and the 7th
Company Law Directive on consolidated accounts (Directive 83/349/EEC). 
[15]As part of the standardisation work on energy audits in the
framework of the mandate M/479 from the European Commission to CEN and CENELEC,
this first standard on general requirements for energy audits has been
published. Specific standards on energy audits in
buildings, processes and transport are being finalised.
In addition, a specific additional standard for the
qualification of energy auditors is under preparation.
[16] As possible
guidance specifically in the buildings context, the LCCA concept has been used
in the Delegated Regulation 244/2012 on methodology framework for calculating
cost-optimal levels of minimum energy performance requirements for buildings
and building elements. The accompanying guidelines on LCCA (http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2012:115:0001:0028:EN:PDF)
on page 21 provide some more detailed explanations. This is largely based on EN
15459 Economic evaluation procedure for energy systems in buildings.
[17] An energy investment’s Simple Payback Period is the amount of time
it will take to recover the initial investment in energy savings, dividing
initial installed cost by the annual energy cost savings. While Simple Payback
is easy to compute, its weakness is that it fails to factor in the time value
of money, inflation, project lifetime or operation and maintenance costs. 
[18] Discounted Payback is period
is a variation of payback period which accounts for time value of money by
discounting the cash inflows from a project. Internal Rate of Return is the
rate that makes the present value of all cash flows from a particular
investment equal to zero. Return on Investment is the ration of money gained or
lost on an investment relative to the amount of money invested.
[19] OJ C 82, 1.4.2008. The Guidelines are under revision to take into
account new developments, including the EED.
[20] Commission Regulation 800/2008, OJ L 214, 9.8.2008. The Regulation
is under revision to take into account new developments, including the EED.
[21] The Article replaces Article 12 of the ESD.