The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21 or CMP 11, takes place in Paris later this month with the objective of achieving a universal and legally binding agreement on tackling climate change.

Taking a step back, reacting to climate change at a corporate level is more about employing common sense and looking for good old-fashioned cost savings. Savills is already active in this area with its energy optimisation initiative. The Savills Energy & Infrastructure team works closely with Savills Commercial Property Management as well as its own external clients to offer energy audits which quantify and map a company's and/or a building's energy profile and usage, and then make recommendations to improve energy performance and reduce costs.

Legislation and regulations, such as ESOS and the MEES EPC ratings which, from April 2018, will bar the re-letting of properties with F and G energy ratings, are helping us by forcing clients to take action. But increasingly we are seeing clients recognise that it just makes good business sense to evaluate their energy use and costs, and look to make reductions.

The recommendations we make – for example, to install LED lighting and other on-site energy generation such as solar, upgrades to Building Managment System and the fabric of a building, improvements to pumps, fans and motors, improved efficiency of heating and cooling – can often be fully funded by third parties through Energy Saving Performance Contracts so companies may benefit from immediate energy bill reductions and an improved working environment. The most obvious thing clients should do, however, is just make sure they buy power at the cheapest possible price. Again we are helping here as a registered energy broker.

So when you read about the negotiations and likely shenanigans at the Paris talks, remember that a lot of the changes needed to really make a difference on climate change must happen at a local building-by-building level. And since this can also save owners and occupants money, it's actually a win-win situation for everyone concerned.

Further information

Contact Savills Energy Utilities and Infrastructure.