ALLIES – Activating and Learning from Local Investment in Energy Savings

The project has been completed. It established a financing model for energy efficiency projects by means of local approaches in Poland and Hungary.
Among the large number of funding mechanisms, such as those offered by Germany’s Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA), very few are dedicated to energy efficiency. Companies often lack the incentive to save energy costs without limiting their investments. Barriers include a lack of awareness of energy efficiency issues, insufficient knowledge of state-of-the-art efficiency technology, staff shortages, time restrictions and high cash recovery requirements.
That is where the ALLIES project’s financing model comes in. One advantage of the financing model is that investments can be realised without affecting the balance sheet structure: neither equity nor borrowing is required, which means that there are no adverse consequences for credit ratings. The investment funds freed up can be used elsewhere and organisations can take advantage of saved energy costs from the outset. In addition, companies benefit from an improved image as energy- and climate-conscious organisations.
At the core of the project’s approach was the involvement of citizens and local businesses at regional level as investors and facilitators of energy efficiency projects in companies and communities. The investments generate steady returns for reinvestment and provide citizens with tools that contribute to climate change mitigation and local economic and environmental sustainability.
The ALLIES concept combined three pillars with an explicit regional focus:
The concept is based on the REEG model (Regional Energy Efficiency Cooperatives), which was developed by B.A.U.M. e.V. with the support of the German Government. There are over a thousand energy cooperatives in Germany operating renewable energy systems, but they rarely focus on energy savings. By applying the REEG concept, their scope of action can easily be extended to include energy efficiency.
The project applied experience gained in Germany to Poland and Hungary, where it found resources and financing structures suitable for the respective countries.
Updated: September 2021
Countries: Germany, Hungary, Poland
Project duration: 01/18 - 06/20
Funding: 529,999 €
Target groups: Cities, towns and municipalities, Educational institutions, Governments, NGOs, Small and medium enterprises (SME)
Implementing organisation:
B.A.U.M. e.V. – Bundesdeutscher Arbeitskreis für umweltbewusstes Management e.V.
Project Partners:
FEWE – Fundacja na rzecz Efektywnego Wykorzystania, INEM – International Network of Environmental Management, KÖVET Association for Sustainable Economies Hungary
Website: allies-project.eu/
Ms Dr Anna Stetter
Organisation: B.A.U.M. Consult GmbH
Adresse: Gotzinger Str. 48/50
81371 Munich
Germany
Email: a.stetter∂baumgroup.com
Tel: +49 89 18935 189
This project is part of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI). EUKI is a project financing instrument by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). The EUKI call for project ideas is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. It is the overarching goal of the EUKI to foster climate cooperation within the European Union (EU) in order to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.
European Climate Initiative (EUKI)
Potsdamer Platz 10
10785 Berlin – Germany
Tel.: +49 (0)30 338424 570
info∂euki.de