How Greece drives energy efficiency: 5 innovative companies

How to drive energy efficiency?

1. Make energy efficiency projects bankable
2. Gain client trust by delivering energy savings as promised

How that works?

During last years, energy efficiency experts in Europe and US, backed by a 1,5 billion EUR investor network, have worked together to increase confidence into investing in energy efficiency - serving companies and investors alike.

The result is the ICP framework, which assembles best practices and existing technical standards into a set of Protocols that define a clear roadmap for developing projects, determining savings estimates, and documenting and verifying results. ICP certified project developers can apply the ICP framework and receive an ICP's Investor Ready Energy Efficiency™ (IREE™) international certification that insures best practices, the right professionals and third-party validation by certified quality assurance providers are used to deliver high-quality projects that clients and investors can bank on.

Many innovative and open minded ESCOs, engineering firms and assurance providers are already ICP certified - and we want to introduce them to you, here are 5 innovative Greek companies.

And we have asked them to tell us (and you) the reason why they have decided to become ICP certified!

1. Enerca, contact Nikolaos Pasialis
2. Energineering Solutions, contact Marianna Digka
3. Dimand, contact Sandra Baer
4. VPC, contact Vasileios Paraskevopoulos
5. LDK Consultants, contact Nick Papadopoulos

And here is what they have told us...

LDK Consultants

"LDK Consultants is engaged in the energy efficiency field for more than 30 years providing services to private investors as well as to international financing institutions such us EC, EIB, EBRD and World Bank. Through our experience we realized that a world-wide accepted protocol that could cover all the phases of an energy conservation project could decrease uncertainty in energy savings calculations and improve the quality of works having as a final result the easier access to funding.  We strongly believe that ICP protocols do cover all these requirements and in this context LDK has been certified an ICP Developer and Quality Assurance Assesor since 2017. We are proud to be part of this innovative effort and we are currently offering services that can cover all aspects of an ICP project."  

VPC

"VPC is a leading commissioning company in Greece. Our commitment to delivering trouble free, energy efficient projects and our involvement with energy audits and retro commissioning activities has led us to developing and implementing our custom-made procedures and protocols in line with applicable standards. ICP proved to be of similar approach and with the potential of standardizing the process. For us ICP provide ready to use protocols and adds value to our work by being an independent scheme, setting the best practice standards."

Dimand

"Our knowledge in the field of energy efficiency measures and sustainability certifications paired with our experience as technical advisors and facility managers started our interest in the procedure of obtaining the Investor Ready Energy Efficiency certification. The lack of energy efficient buildings in Greece and the general economic situation, make us believe that efficiency improvement tools are highly required. The ICP approach might be a solution not only to guarantee financing of projects, but also to proof to possible clients, that specific suggested energy efficiency measures are valid and even more third-party certified."

Energineering Solutions

"Working in the industrial energy efficiency sector in Greece for the past 10 years, we have seen that there are two significant barriers to proceed with projects.
The one is lack of financing for small scale projects and the second is lack of trust from the part of our clients.With so many companies claiming to be energy experts and not delivering the promised results in terms of savings, even the customers that have a technical background get confused.
Acquiring the IREE Certification has helped us sooth both these barriers. We now see clients feeling more assured, knowing that they collaborate with a consultancy in compliance with international certification standards, and at the same time we noticed a shift in our encounter with investors. We have seen that the ICP Certificate gives all parties the peace of mind needed to proceed with confidence in complex energy efficiency projects."

Enerca

"ENERCA is a newly established technical company, founded by two Electrical Engineers with vast experience in Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) of projects, implemented  worldwide during the past fifteen years. The main objectives of ENERCA are the performance of energy surveys and energy audits, the elaboration of energy studies, the Energy Services (ESCo) provision and the implementation of Energy Efficiency Projects, aiming to the energy cost reduction. The industrial sector, the tertiary sector’s buildings, the transportation sector and the maritime sector falls within the scope of Energy Efficiency applications implementations by ENERCA.
ENERCA became an ICP certified member, as a natural progression to the services already offered, in terms of energy surveys, energy efficiency studies, energy efficiency project implementations and energy efficiency result verifications. The ICP organization, by standardizing how energy efficiency projects are developed, documented and measured, provides an additional credibility to ENERCA by insuring that the best practices, the right professionals and third-party validation are used to deliver high-quality projects that the customer can rely on."

These companies can deliver to clients and investors what this little video about ICP shows

• standardised, transparent and structured development of projects
• access to finance by making projects bankable
• standard process methodology and documentation to reduce risks and transaction costs for Industry, Street Lighting, District Energy and Buildings.

Planned to be a blog series, we will introduce further companies across Europe in the coming weeks - stay tuned.

How to become a certified PD and/or QAA?

For more information on how to become a certified Porject Developer and/or Quality Assurance Provider, please check here.
You can also contact Jorge Rodrigues de Almeida, ICP Europe Director or Quitterie de Rivoyre, ICP Europe Project Manager for more information.
AND - training and certification is free as ICP Europe is co-funded under the EU Horizon 2020 programme!

In the meantime, you can find here some further background information about the ICP framework, the ICP Europe and the team. EEIP is proud to be part of this team.

• The Investor Confidence Project: The Time is Now By Rod Janssen
• Depleting stupidity. By Dr. Steven Fawkes
• Message to the investor community: Be that "bridge over troubled water". By Rod Janssen
• Risk minimization for energy efficiency projects. By Daniel Schoeler

ICP was part of the recommendations of the "Energy Effciency Financial Insitutions Group" (EEFIG) in its landmark report "Energy Efficiency – the first fuel for the EU Economy: How to drive new finance for energy efficiency investments". EEFIG itself was established 2013 by the European Commission Directorate-General for Energy (DG Energy) and United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI).

Further top innovative companies...

• 5 innovative UK energy efficiency project developers and quality assurance providers

Stay tuned! Best ideas for energy efficiency and energy transition...