The first half of the QualitEE's project duration focussed on market analysis and the development of the core elements of the future national quality assurance schemes for energy efficiency services (EES).
A thorough market analysis consisting of an online survey, expert interviews and desk research has been performed as basis for further activities in the QualitEE project. The 15 EU countries covered by QualitEE are at different stages of development of their energy efficiency services markets.
Even though the needs, expectations and characteristics differ depending on the level of advancement of the markets, the 2017 survey of the European energy efficiency service markets showed that the market has seen substantial growth over the last decade. While limited budgets and pressure to reduce costs are key drivers for the business, lack of trust in market actors and the complexity of the business model prevent the market from prospering. A clear recommendation from the performed country analyses was that quality assurance schemes should be developed and implemented to overcome some of the market barriers.
Quality criteria as basis for quality assurance schemes
Quality assurance for energy efficiency services is one way to increase trust in the service and providers. It will serve clients as a tool to distinguish good quality projects.
The QualitEE project developed technical and financial quality criteria for energy efficiency services (energy performance contracting in first place). The technical criteria build the basis for quality assurance and represent a major step towards European standardisation of energy efficiency services. The technical guidelines are targeted at public and private clients, energy service providers, financial institutions, procurement staff and policy makers. The criteria define and operationalize technical, economic, communicational, and other criteria, which allow a comprehensive set of quality criteria to be applicable in quality assurance and certification schemes.
Pilot projects
The criteria have been applied to existing projects with a total project value of over 13.5 Mio. €, ranging from project values of 20,000 to 6.6 Mio € to test their applicability for quality assurance and gain information of the quality assuring processes.
National quality assurance schemes
The development process of national quality assurance schemes for EES is based on the constitution of National Promotion Teams, which consist of representatives of the most important stakeholders. First meetings have taken place in the individual partner countries to assess the market needs and perspectives. Results of the national promotion team preselection are discussed in larger panels, called National Discussion Platforms to acquire market acceptance for the quality assurance schemes. Additional capacity building activities shall further increase understanding and acceptance of stakeholders.
