RPS Accredited for ESOS Audit Assessments

Thomas Vazakas of RPS' London Cornhill office is one of the first 30 people in the UK to be accredited as an ESOS (Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme) Lead Auditor. The ESOS regulations will have a significant impact on thousands of companies that operate in UK and many of RPS' clients will need certified ESOS Lead Assessors to deliver ESOS compliant energy audits and ensure compliance with the new regulations.

ESOS is a mandatory energy auditing scheme for large companies. The scheme is the UK's implementation of Article 8 of the European Energy Efficiency Directive and its scope is wider than current carbon schemes, such as CRC, as it covers all parts of an organisation's energy consumption – buildings, industrial processes and transport.

An organisation will fall within the scope of ESOS if it is:

1. An undertaking which has 250 or more employees in the UK;
2. An undertaking which has fewer than 250 employees, but has an annual turnover exceeding €50m and a balance sheet exceeding €43m; or
3. Is part of a corporate group which includes an undertaking which meets criteria (1) or (2) above.

Any companies that meet any of these three criteria by 31st December 2014 will have to participate in ESOS and the first ESOS report must be submitted to the Environment Agency by December 2015.

Dr David Lee (Divisional Managing Director) advised "As one of the very first accredited ESOS Energy Auditors in the UK, and with his proven commercial and technical expertise, Thomas and the London Sustainability and Energy team are ideally placed to advise the many companies who will be affected by this new legislation."