“Energy as a Service”: The sustainable solution in Energy
An interactive conversation with ZEB responds to issues of energy management and savings for enterprises.
What is the digital environment and the new energy markets?
Why should a company adopt the “EaaS” model (Energy-as-a-Service) and which are the advantages of this model?
At a time when the climate crisis, changes in the energy sector and high energy costs raise critical questions for energy entrepreneurship and investment, the search for sustainable solutions is imperative.
In this context, on Tuesday, the event “Energy as a Service – The future in energy production and saving” organized by ZEB with the support of Boussias Events held on 5th March 2024 at the “Atraktos multipurpose hall”, is considered well-timed and crucial for the future of energy production and savings for companies. After all, ZEB is one of the first Greek energy service companies (ESCOs), having a comprehensive portfolio of services and the necessary know-how for its people to profoundly go through the matter. The event was attended by engineers, energy & environmental management professionals, and facility management experts coming from the industrial sector, construction companies, hotels and large buildings in general.
At the core of this interactive event the EaaS scheme was set. “In the last year we have progressed to a new form of contract, that of “Energy as a Service”, emphasized Mr. Aris Papadopoulos, CEO of ZEB, who stated that the opening of energy markets, the digitization of networks and the operation of energy stock exchanges, now allow ZEB, and by extension ESCOs, to offer customized services utilizing the EaaS model that may include energy efficiency and energy saving improvements, demand-response solutions, RES installation, energy recording and management, etc. “For all these reasons, the financing for the purchase and installation, and the accountability for operation and maintenance are undertaken by us, giving added value to our customer,” said Mr. Papadopoulos. Having as a vision to “be a key player in a sustainable future,” as the CEO of ZEB stated, ZEB provides services for energy and carbon footprint reduction of cities, buildings and facilities. It is worth noting that at this time the company is the main designer and consultant of the State on how buildings will be turned to low energy consumption.
Moving further onto the analysis of the “Energy as a Service” model, Mr. Giorgos Ageridis, Energy & Environment Consultant, presented from the stage one of the main parameters used in the afore-mentioned entrepreneurial scheme, which concerns on-site production with Dispersed (or distributed) Power Sources, “where electricity is produced close to the place of consumption”. After showing what the DPSs are, he moved onto the main factors generating their development, which, among other things, concern the objective to reduce energy costs and the drive to both participate in tackling the climate crisis by producing and using clean energy and to the favourable domestic and European institutional framework and the financial subsidy / funding opportunities. Not only did Mr. Ageridis highlight the benefits of DPSs, but also, he outlined the related challenges, while he, later, mentioned that by using the “Energy as a Service” model, ESCO’s offered service is fully customized and shifts from the sale of “energy units” to the offer of “holistic solutions of energy and outcomes”.
Mr. Nissan Caspi, Chairman of IP Innovative Power, in his respect, communicated his experience from the application of the EaaS model to other countries. IP Innovative Power is a component of a vertically integrated group of energy solutions, which main mission is to reduce emissions related to real estate. In his speech, Mr. Caspi went through two case-studies, namely the “green” energy solutions that were used in the Park Center Treptow project in Berlin and in Init in Amsterdam.
Later, Mr. Marios Tsakiris, Head of Energy Services of ZEB, focused on the application of the EaaS in Greece, mentioning, among other things, that the energy contract concerns the financing, the procurement, the installation and the maintenance of equipment along with the calculating and monitoring to cover energy needs along with the estimation and measurement of performance. “The EaaS model refers to specific technologies, such as installation of heat pumps, most likely boilers with an improved efficiency ratio, PVs and accumulators, cogeneration of both electricity and heat, and PPA”, noted Mr. Tsakiris.
The next speaker, Mr. Dimitris Kazazoglou, Director of Corporate Governance & Sustainability of ALPHA BANK, referred to the ESG criteria and sustainable funding. In fact, he presented various tiers of sustainable lending, such as one promoted by the bank to companies that get their revenue, for instance 80%, out of activities related to sustainability, such as energy effectiveness, energy production from renewable energy sources, the upgrading of buildings to be converted into energy efficient ones or ideally to perform zero energy consumption, etc.
The last speaker, Mr. Theodoros Krintas, Founder & CEO of KOUBARAS analysed the distribution of risks, yields as well as financing from third parties. Regarding the risks and their management, Mr. Krintas referred to certain steps: the clear allocation of risks and responsibilities, the diversification of their projects in different sectors, technologies and geographical areas, the insurances and guarantees of performance, and the monitoring and assessment to identify potential risks in early stage.
The event was completed with the speakers – associates of ZEB responding to audience questions, while social networking followed in the relaxing and atmospheric ambience of the venue with finger food, cocktails, and light spirits.
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