The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has issued a tender for the empanelment or re-empanelment of eligible entities as Energy Service Company (ESCO).

The application submission deadline is April 15, 2018.

BEE is promoting energy efficiency initiatives in the country under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, including promotion of energy conservation measures in existing facilities through the ESCO model.

BEE intends to prepare and maintain a list of empaneled ESCOs with a validity of two years. For empanelment with BEE, all ESCOs, irrespective of their previous grading validities, will have to undergo fresh assessment this year as the criteria for assessment of ESCOs have now been revised.

India is moving towards a more efficient energy distribution system. Energy efficiency is as important as shifting from fossils to renewables. Energy efficient systems lead to reduced costs and carbon emission. ESCOs generally engage in performance-based contracts with a client firm to implement measures which reduce energy consumption and costs in a technically viable manner.

In June 2017, BEE also developed Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) 2017 with technical support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the U.S.-India bilateral Partnership to Advance Clean Energy – Deployment Technical Assistance (PACE-D TA) Program.

The ECBC 2017 prescribed the energy performance standards for new commercial buildings to be constructed across India. It provides current as well as futuristic advancements in building technology to further reduce energy consumption in buildings and promote low-carbon growth by setting parameters for builders, designers, and architects to integrate renewable energy sources in the building designs with the inclusion of passive design strategies.

Apart from BEE, Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) is also involved in the enhancement of energy efficiency sector.

Mercom previously reported that EESL and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) entered into a partnership to launch a $454 million project called the “Creating and Sustaining Markets for Energy Efficiency” with a target of mitigating 60 million tons of CO2 equivalent and enabling total direct energy savings of 38.3 million GJ (1 GJ = 277.778 kWh) by 2022 and 137.5 million GJ by 2032.