Municipal energy management for sustainable climate financing

Foundation Center for Energy Efficiency EnEffect

Goals

As a means to produce quality energy and climate action plans in Bulgaria, the project develops a model for systematic municipal energy management. By enabling authorities to collect and make use of reliable, energy-related data, the introduction of this model contributes to the quality implementation of local long-term energy and climate strategies as well as to the attraction of private investors.

Project content and Measures

Recognizing the lack of systematic energy management systems in Bulgarian municipalities, the project works together with several partners. The local NGO EnEffect developed an energy management tool box that allows municipalities to develop energy management systems that comply with internationally recognized standards. Making use of the tools ensures the provision of reliable, energy-related data, enabling high-quality energy analyses, project monitoring, and improved planning processes.

View on houses and landscape; photo: Foundation Center for Energy Efficiency EnEffect

This, in turn, will increase the potential to attract financing for energy and climate projects, especially with regards to innovative financial schemes such as Energy Performance Contracting (EPC) services, but also potentially attracting investments from the national Energy Savings Obligation Scheme. Among the project partners is also the Bulgarian National Trust Eco Fund. Their aim is to improve the environmental impacts of its investments.

View on Bulgarian street, photo: Center for Energy Efficiency EnEffect

To this end, EcoTrust is developing a financing scheme that requires both the implementation and monitoring of energy management practices from investees. They thus encourage the implementation of the newly developed energy management systems.

Background

Up until recently, systematic energy management has been non-existent in Bulgarian municipalities. While in many European countries, municipal energy management systems in compliance with the ISO 50001 standard is a well-established practice, Bulgaria has only a few small municipalities for which this is the case.
In addition, current municipal energy efficiency projects in Bulgaria are mostly dependent on excessive grant financing and rarely require proper monitoring of the achieved results. Private investment is rare: the lack of reliable data and monitoring mechanisms prevents potential investors from building trust. The project provides the necessary conditions for the stable transition from grant-based financing to sustainable financing mechanisms.

Project information

Updated: March 2020

Countries: Bulgaria, Germany

Project duration: 10/19 - 03/21

Funding: 139,471 €

Target groups: Cities, towns and municipalities, Civil Society, Companies, Experts, Investors, Private sector

Implementing organisation:
Center for Energy Efficiency EnEffect

Partners: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., National Trust Ecofund Bulgaria (NTEF)

Project Webseite: eneffect.bg/

Contact Person

Mr Dragomir Tzanev

Organisation: Center for Energy Efficiency EnEffect

Address:
1, Hristo Smirnenski Blvd, fl. 3
1164 Sofia
Bulgaria

Email: dtzanev∂eneffect.bg

EUKI

The European Climate Initiative (EUKI):

Potsdamer Platz 10,
10117 Berlin – Deutschland
Tel.: +49 (0)30 338424 570
info∂euki.de

The European Climate Initiative (EUKI):

This project is part of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI). EUKI is a project financing instrument by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). The EUKI competition 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.

For more information on the EUKI: www.euki.de

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