Energy performance contracting (EPC): a suitable mechanism for achieving energy savings in housing cooperatives? Results from a Norwegian pilot project

Increasing research interests in energy performance contracting (EPC) has resulted in a large number of publications over the past decade. However, very limited attempts have been made to map the global research in this area. To identify the state of the field and trends in EPC research, the VOSviewer software package was used to conduct a series of content analyses and examine global patterns among publications, including the distribution of core authors and institutions, high-frequency categories and keywords, journal and author contributions, highly cited papers, etc. Based on a systematical and deeply qualitative analysis on the 127 identified papers, five mainstream research topics in EPC were summarized, covering implementations of EPC, mechanisms for effective EPC projects, stakeholder behaviors and decisions in EPC projects, energy service company (ESCO) in EPC projects, and risk management in EPC. In addition, six main research gaps in EPC were identified, including lack of effective measurement and verification of energy savings, limited studies on EPC projects in the residential sector, ineffective mechanisms to ensure post-EPC energy-saving, limited research on the dual relationships among EPC project stakeholders, how to improve the energy users’ (EU) attitudes/cognitions toward ESCO/EPC, and lack of effective mechanisms to prevent risks in EPC projects. Furthermore, based on the current EPC research topics and research gaps in EPC, six potential research directions in EPC in future were also explored, which are how to develop effective methods for measuring and verifying energy efficiency?, EPC diffusion issues in the residential sector, effective mechanisms to ensure post-EPC energy-saving, effects of cooperative and competitive relationships between EU and ESCO on the performance of EPC projects, how to improve the EU’s attitudes/cognitions toward ESCO/EPC, and how to deal with risks in EPC projects. The outcomes would be useful for understanding the latest development of global EPC research and guiding future research in the subject.

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Application and risk assessment of the energy performance contracting model in energy conservation of public buildings

Applied Mathematics and Nonlinear Sciences ◽

10.2478/amns.2021.2.00034 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Hongyan Li

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Energy Conservation ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Energy Performance ◽

Public Buildings ◽

Performance Contracting ◽

The One ◽

Contracting Model ◽

Energy Performance Contracting

Abstract With the development of China’s economy, the total area of public buildings is continuously increasing, and higher energy consumption in this field is gradually becoming prominent. In order to improve this situation, China has been working on energy savings in public buildings since 2007. Energy-saving models and energy policies have become the lifeline of sustainable energy development. Furthermore, the energy-saving renovation of public buildings, as a key project, has attracted the attention of governments and scholars. In the report of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, energy conservation and emission reduction were given a prominent place. The 13th Five-Year Plan (2016–2020) aims to further promote China’s energy conservation work. On the one hand, administrative and legal measures should be taken to strengthen energy conservation. On the other hand, it is necessary to speed up the establishment of a long-term market-based energy-saving mechanism and to rely on market forces to remove various obstacles to energy conservation. Energy performance contracting (EPC) is a practical and effective method applied in energy conservation. Therefore, this research aims to put forward a relatively perfect energy-saving risk management system for EPC public building projects based on analysis of the factors influencing investment risks of energy-saving projects and the use of quantifiable risk management models, thus providing some theoretical support for the risk decision-making of energy service companies.

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RISK FRAMEWORK FOR ENERGY PERFORMANCE CONTRACTING BUILDING RETROFITS

Journal of Green Building ◽

10.3992/jgb.11.2.93.1 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 93-115 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

George H. Berghorn ◽

M.G. Matt Syal

Keyword(s):

Energy Savings ◽

Relevant Literature ◽

Minimum Energy ◽

Energy Performance ◽

Project Performance ◽

Control Measures ◽

Rapid Screening ◽

Performance Contracting ◽

Risk Framework ◽

Energy Performance Contracting

Energy performance contracting (EPC) has emerged as a useful project financing and delivery tool for building retrofits, particularly among building ownerships which have experienced reduced funding for capital projects. Through EPC, a contractor (called the EPC contractor or the energy service company) guarantees minimum energy savings performance and enables the building owner to finance the project using utility savings over the length of the project (which is typically 12–15 years, or longer). Despite its growing use, there is a dearth of literature regarding a contractor's risks related to the delivery and execution of EPC building retrofits. This is particularly important as the performance guarantee effectively transfers project performance risk from the owner to the EPC contractor. This research proposes a project factors-based risk framework for EPC building retrofits, initially developed through a comprehensive review of relevant literature and project documents and refined through the elicited expertise of 19 highly experienced EPC contracting professionals. A Delphi technique-based expertise elicitation strategy was used to confirm the findings of the a priori (literature-based) framework and provide additional analysis related to risk causes and control measures as well as relative risk importance. This information was used to construct a refined risk framework which provides insight into the lengthy project performance period during the earliest phases of the project's life cycle. This has the advantage of providing rapid screening of the project factors that can potentially lead to the greatest project performance risks.

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Current market development of energy performance contracting

Journal of Property Investment and Finance ◽

10.1108/jpif-01-2014-0003 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 32 (4) ◽

pp. 371-395 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Pan Lee ◽

Tsun Ip Lam ◽

Ren Jye Dzeng

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Light Emitting Diode ◽

Energy Performance ◽

Market Development ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Content Type ◽

Performance Contracting ◽

Promotional Efforts ◽

Energy Performance Contracting

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the current market development of Energy Performance Contracting (EnPC) in Hong Kong and Taiwan, focussing on four key aspects: first, the potential building energy retrofits as an investment for future savings; second, the motivations for building owners toward the use of EnPC; third, the reasons for building owners not using EnPC; and fourth, the different approaches of Hong Kong and Taiwanese governments toward the promotion of EnPC. Design/methodology/approach – A dual-questionnaire survey was conducted both in Hong Kong and Taiwan, where the same set of questionnaire was sent to the key personnel of the energy services companies (ESCOs) in both regions as identified from the latest member lists of representative trade associations, supplement with 11 structured interviews. Findings – Apart from explainable differences, the results show the top rankings by the respondents of Hong Kong and Taiwan as follows: “Potential retrofit works” including lighting replacement with efficient fluorescent and light emitting diode lamps and improvement of air-con system. “EnPC Motivations” including owners’ lack of upfront capital and use of energy savings for other purposes may yield better returns; ESCOs’ provision of turnkey services. “Reasons not considering EnPC” including worry about its complexities; lack of familiarity with EnPC and long payback periods. As for promotional efforts for EnPC, the Taiwan government has taken more initiatives to foster its use both technically and financially. Practical implications – This study identifies market-related motivators and deterrents as experienced by ESCOs in implementing EnPC projects in two developed Asian economies. Originality/value – This study provides insightful information for the stakeholders about the latest market development of EnPC in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

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