ESOS Compliance
kW Energy Consultants are here to help you achieve ESOS compliance. Our expert team of ESOS lead assessors will work alongside your business to complete your ESOS audit and help implement energy efficiency and money saving solutions to save you money in the future, and reduce the damaging environmental impact of your organisation.
For more information and to find out how we can help your business get in touch today.
ESOS Phase 4
The Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) is a mandatory scheme introduced by the UK government for organisations meeting the qualification criteria. The participating businesses and enterprises must undertake regular energy audits to seek opportunities to save on energy and carbon emissions. The scheme is administered by the Environment Agency in the UK.
Mandatory ESOS audits occur in four-year cycles, so qualifying organisations must carry out an ESOS audit every four years. These assessments are to audit the energy efficiency of their buildings, transport and industrial processes to identify cost-effective energy-saving measures.
During each phase of ESOS, organisations must notify the Environment Agency by a set deadline that they have complied with their ESOS obligations. The deadline for notification of compliance for ESOS Phase 4 is December 2027; this sounds like a long way off, but will come around quickly, so the time to act is NOW.
Do you qualify for an ESOS Audit?
ESOS applies to large UK undertakings and their corporate groups. It mainly affects businesses but can also apply to not-for-profit bodies and any other non-public sector undertakings that are large enough to meet the qualification criteria. Public sector organisations do not usually need to comply with ESOS.
An organisation qualifies if it meets the ESOS definition of a large undertaking, and corporate groups qualify if at least one UK group member meets the ESOS definition of a large undertaking.
A large undertaking is defined as:
-
any UK company that;
-
employs 250+ people, or;
-
has an annual turnover exceeding £44,000,000 and an annual balance sheet exceeding £38,000,000
-
-
any overseas organisation with a UK registered establishment which has 250+ UK employees that are paying income tax in the United Kingdom.
For more information on whether your company meets the requirements for taking part in ESOS, view the government ESOS advice page. Alternatively, get in touch and one of our qualified assessors can advise you.
Completing your ESOS Audit
There are several steps you must take to complete your ESOS assessment:
​
1 - Calculate total energy consumption
You must calculate the total energy used by your company or group’s assets and activities. This total includes energy consumed by buildings, transport and industrial processes.
​
2 - Identify areas of significant consumption
​
This is the energy used by all assets held or activities carried out by your organisation or group that needs to be included in an energy audit and must account for at least 95% of your total energy consumption.
​
3 - Calculate your energy intensity ratios
​
You must calculate the energy intensity ratios for:
-
Buildings
-
Transport
-
Industrial Processes
An energy intensity ratio is a measurement which compares an organisation's consumption to an appropriate indicator activity or asset, for example kWh of energy consumer per square metre of building floor area (kWh/m2).
​
4 - Appoint an ESOS lead assessor
An ESOS lead assessor is needed to carry out and review your ESOS audits and assessments. That’s where we come in. Our team of experienced energy assessors will work with you to achieve ESOS compliance and find cost-effective energy solutions, and advise you on areas for improvement along with an indication of the energy and cost savings that could be achieved. We'll carry out the ESOS energy audit (step 5) and ESOS report (step 6) for you.
​
5 - Carry out ESOS energy audits
​
An ESOS compliant energy audit must meet the following criteria:
-
12 months of verifiable data, beginning no earlier than 6 December 2023 for Phase 4
-
It must analyse the participant's energy consumption and energy efficiency
-
It must identify energy saving opportunities
-
It must include site visits
​
6 - Complete ESOS report and share with corporate group
​
The organisation must complete an ESOS report detailing the ESOS energy audit. This report is a record of your audit, including compliance route, energy savings opportunities and energy savings achieved since the last ESOS compliance date.
​
7 - Notify the Environment Agency
Once we have completed your ESOS audit and confirmed that you have achieved compliance with your obligations as an organisation you must notify the Environment Agency (EA) of your ESOS compliance using the Managing your ESOS system (MESOS). The notification to the EA will include:
-
Organisation details
-
How it has complied
-
Energy consumption information
-
Energy savings opportunities
​
The deadline for submitting a compliance notification is 5th December 2027. Any organisation that qualifies for Phase 4 and fails to submit a notification of compliance before the deadline will be at risk of enforcement action.
Before submitting the notification, one board-level director or person exercising management control must sign-off on both the ESOS assessment and content of the compliance notification.
​
8 - Keep records
Throughout the whole ESOS audit process, you must keep records showing how you have achieved compliance. This will include the reports and analysis provided by our lead energy assessors; this is also known as the Evidence Pack.
​
We'll guide you through every step of the way; in order to meet the deadline it is highly recommended to engage with us as soon as possible so we can start the process of gathering the relevant data, organising site surveys and compiling the ESOS audit and group summary reports prior to submission. For more information, please get in touch.
Achieving Compliance from your ESOS Assessment
There are three key criteria that must be met in order to achieve compliance from your ESOS energy audit:
​
1 - The audit must be based on 12 months’ verifiable data
​
This data must be for a continuous 12 month period and must not have already been used for an energy audit from a previous ESOS phase. The data cannot be taken from more than 24 months before the start of the ESOS assessment.
For Phase 4, the assessment period must include 31st December 2026; so the assessment period can start on any date between 1st January 2026 and 6th December 2026 (deadline is 5th December 2027). As a result, the ESOS process can start now by gathering data and conducting site audits.
​
2 - The audit has to analyse your energy consumption and efficiency
​
Our ESOS lead assessors will analyse and profile your organisation’s energy consumption to identify the ways in which energy is used and where inefficiencies lie.
​
3 - Your ESOS assessment must identify energy-saving opportunities for your organisation
​
ESOS stands for Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme, so it makes sense that this plays a vital role in the audit. At kW Energy Consultants Ltd our qualified ESOS lead assessors will work with you and analyse the data from your assessment to identify cost-effective, practical opportunities to reduce your organisation’s energy consumption. Our recommendations will include estimated costs and benefits of implementing the measures so that you have a full understanding of the suggestions made. This will enable you to calculate the cost-effectiveness of implementing the energy-saving opportunities for your business.
FAQs
What is the deadline for Phase 4 of ESOS?
The ESOS Phase 3 deadline is 5th December 2027. The Environment Agency must be notified of your compliance by this date.
What is the qualification date for ESOS Phase 4?
31st December 2026 is the qualification date for Phase 4 of ESOS. If your organisation meets the definition of a large undertaking on 31st December 2026, then it is mandatory for you to comply with ESOS Phase 4.
What are the penalties for non-compliance?
The environmental regulator responsible for enforcing compliance of ESOS in your part of the UK could take action against you if you fail to demonstrate compliance. This action could include civil sanctions and significant fines.
​
Just as important, even if your company does not qualify, can you really afford to ignore your energy consumption?
Choose kW Energy Consultants to be your ESOS Lead Assessor
If your organisation qualifies for ESOS, or you think it might, get in touch with us today to find out more about how kW Energy Consultants Ltd can help you through the process. Our experienced lead assessors always go the extra mile to provide innovative solutions to your energy problems and will work with you every step of the way, from the initial assessment through to the implementation of the resulting suggestions. It can be a complicated and time-consuming affair, but it can have a lasting beneficial impact on your organisation, and we are here to help. Call us on 07837 941220, email us at james@kwenergyconsultants.com or fill out the contact form below to discuss your needs with a member of the kW team. You can also check out our business energy consulting page to see the other services we offer. We look forward to working with you.