Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme

Improve your business performance by understanding and reducing your energy usage.

What is ESOS?

  • The EU directive for the Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme was launched in 2015.

    The scheme is designed to include organisations and businesses previously too small for the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme.

    The aim is to have common approach to auditing. Recommendations for energy savings and Total Energy Consumption are reported to the Environment Agency by the Compliance Date for each phase of the scheme.

    The Environment Agency has the authority to audit ESOS assessments and will issue fines to those not complying with the requirements of the scheme.

  • The aim of the scheme is to help organisations understand their energy usage and carbon emissions from direct activities and to make plans to reduce energy usage from:

    • Manufacturing processes

    • Transport

    • Buildings

  • The compliance deadline date is 5 December 2027 for Phase 4

    The qualification date for this phase is 31 December 2026

    The second update on your Action Plan Progress Update for Phase 3 is due on 5 Dec 2026

  • Any UK company that either:

    Employed more than 250 employees

    Had an annual turnover in excess of £44m and an annual balance sheet total in excess of £38m

    Public sector organisations do not usually need to comply with ESOS

    You are an overseas entity with more than 250 employees in the UK

    If you’re near the threshold check the guidance or contact us

    If you are fully compliant with ISO 50001 you do not need an ESOS assessment and can notify the EA

Benefits of en energy audit

By 2030 global CO2 emissions need to decline by about 45% below 2010 levels and reach net zero around 2050.

Global warming is now predicted to exceed 1.5°C by the end of the decade and action on reducing carbon emissions is needed to limit this further.

Source: IPCC

  • The need to cut energy usage is now urgent.

    The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) update states the targets…

    By 2030 global CO2 emissions need to decline by about 45% below 2010 levels and reach net zero around 2050.

    This would help to limit global warming to the 1.5°C target but current thinking is that we will overshoot this target and more urgent action is required.

  • By understanding your energy usage, identifying inefficiencies in your activities, costing and evaluating improvements measures you will become a lower carbon organisation with all the benefits:

    • Lower energy bills

    • A more engaged work force

    • More competitive

    • Better business proposition for investment

    • More resilient to energy price shocks

    • The approach taken by ESOS will allow your senior team to understand the longer term pressures on the business and how best to reach Net Zero.

  • Even if you don’t qualify for ESOS, all organisations can benefit from a plan to reduce carbon emissions and understand how net zero might be achieved. We provide a bespoke smaller scale audit with a focus on how best to reduce emissions.

PREPARE FOR AN ENERGY AUDIT

Next steps

  1. Start by reviewing your business structure and how any changes might affect you.

  2. Appoint an assessor early to agree a structure and make data collection streamlined.

  3. Choose your internal primary contact and director responsible for signing off.