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For companies concerned by the obligation to carry out an energy audit, the question is whether to comply with this obligation, or to implement an ISO 50001 certification process and thus "avoid" the energy audit.
Energy audit
Introduced by Law no. 2013-619 of July 16, 2013 to transpose the 2012/27/EU Energy Efficiency Directive, theenergy audit is mandatory for all companies with more than 250 employees or exceeding certain criteria in terms of sales (over €50 million) or balance sheet total (over €43 million). The energy audit must be carried out every 4 years.
The energy audit consists of an examination and analysis of energy use and consumption to identify potential for improving energy efficiency. The energy-saving actions recommended in the audit report are classified according to a hierarchy of energy efficiency improvement opportunities, distinguishing between operations with a fast or longer payback period (between 1 and 4 years or more).
These audits may be carried out by external auditors whose competence has been recognized by a COFRAC-accredited body, or by auditors internal to the company, provided the latter meet the independence and qualification criteria set out in the Order of November 24, 2014. Failure to carry out this energy audit may be sanctioned by a formal notice, which may be made public, and followed, in the absence of compliance within the set deadline, by an administrative fine of up to 2% of sales (4% in the event of a repeat offence).
ISO 50001 standard
Published in 2011, then revised in 2018, the ISO 50001 international standard is designed to support and help companies wishing to implement an approach aimed at reducing/controlling costs and improving their energy performance.
It is based on continuous improvement, a principle that is also found in other standards such as ISO 45001 and ISO 14001, and is a source of energy savings for companies.
The standard has the following objectives:
- Helping companies make more judicious use of energy-intensive resources in place
- Promote best practices in energy management and reinforce good behavior in this area
- Help operators evaluate and prioritize the application of new energy-efficient technologies
- Providing a framework to promote energy efficiency throughout the supply chain
In concrete terms, it requires companies to carry out an energy review, on the basis of which they define energy objectives and targets.
This energy review forms the basis of the entire approach. It aims to :
- identify energy uses (lighting, steam production, heating, etc.),
- then determine the significant energy uses, based on analyses of energy use and consumption
- and prioritize potential energy efficiency improvements
ISO 50001-certified companies are exempt from the energy audit requirement, provided that the scope covered by the certification is identical to that covered by the audit obligation.
What steps should you take?
The energy review provided for in the ISO 50001 standard makes it possible to draw up a precise energy inventory and identify areas for improvement, which is why the law exempts companies wishing to obtain ISO 50001 certification from the obligation to carry out an energy audit.
Faced with this situation, some companies are wondering whether they should implement the ISO 50001 standard, thanks to ISO support, to avoid having to carry out an energy audit.
What's more, the energy audit and the energy review, although not identical, have a similar purpose, namely to identify potential sources for optimizing a company's energy efficiency. Similarly, insofar as the information to be gathered (invoices, consumption records, metering, measurement campaigns, etc.) is to some extent the same, it is reasonable to assume that the interest of these two approaches for the company is comparable. However, the energy audit and the energy review differ and are fundamentally based on two different approaches.
Audits are used to meet legal requirements and identify opportunities for improvement. It is not associated with a process for validating its relevance and content. The legislator has made no provision for sanctions in the event of non-implementation of the associated action plan, and in the end imposes only a means rather than a result objective. In spite of this, the energy audit provided for in the Energy Code provides an interesting snapshot of the company's situation, raising awareness among the various players involved (management, purchasing, general services, research and development, maintenance, etc.) and enabling improvement actions to be taken.
In contrast, the ISO 50001 standard and its energy review aim to position the company in a progress-oriented approach to its energy performance, by inviting companies to place energy efficiency at the heart of their challenges, and therefore of their organization. To this end, the energy review is a periodic, iterative process, with a precise methodology in which assumptions about future consumption are defined. In addition, the ISO 50001 standard requires careful examination of results, and in this respect represents a minor revolution in the field of ISO standards. To this end, companies are required to define energy performance indicators, which must be periodically reviewed and compared with reference consumption.
In this context, commitment to an ISO 50001-type management approach implies a strong desire to deploy a progress approach at all levels of the company (plant design, equipment purchasing, etc.), with the aim of structuring the approach and exploring a wide range of improvements.
The standard requires greater resources and commitment from management than an energy audit, and demands regular, sustained action. So there's no real choice: companies wishing to embark on an ISO 50001 initiative simply to avoid having to carry out a statutory energy audit are certainly not well advised to do so. On the other hand, ISO 50001 can be a powerful tool for embedding energy performance in corporate practices and strategy, and thus reducing not only costs but also the company's environmental footprint.