Bremen - Since 2018, around 2,150 MWh of energy and 820 tons of CO2 have been saved every year at the university site. As a result, energy costs are reduced by around EUR 240,000 each year. In order to make this success possible, ENGIE Deutschland, a company specializing in energy services, had invested around 1.5 million euros in various efficiency measures in selected buildings of the University and the Barkhof secondary school as part of an energy-saving contracting (ESC). In the first year after implementation, the energy savings of 1,777 MWh guaranteed by the service provider were significantly exceeded. ENGIE Deutschland had been awarded the contract for the ESC project within the framework of the EU-wide tender. The entire process was supported by the climate protection agency energiekonsens and its subsidiary beks EnergieEffizienz GmbH. The project will run until December 2029.
"I am very pleased that with the help of the contractor we were able to make urgently needed investments in the buildings of the university and at the same time improve our energy and climate protection balance," says Ulf Rohde, Head of Unit at the Department of Technical Operations and Building Affairs. ENGIE's investments and services in energy saving measures will be refinanced over a 12-year contract period from the energy savings of around 210,000 euros annually. "We have already had good experiences with energy-saving contracting projects in the Hanseatic city in Bremen," says Thomas Raach of ENGIE. Bremen has developed into an important location for energy-saving contracting in Germany: "Through the work of energiekonsens , there is a comparatively high level of knowledge among building operators in Bremen. This is a prerequisite for tackling and implementing projects."
Ulf Rohde confirms this: "We were initially skeptical about the expense involved in tendering the contracting procedure. But the support by beks EnergieEffizienz and the professional implementation of the measures convinced us. We did not have to take any investment funds into our hands and have guaranteed energy and cost savings."
The climate also benefits from the university's contracting project: As a result of the measures, the climate-damaging CO2 emissions have fallen by around 820 tons per year. "We are very pleased that the University of Bremen has now implemented another example of successful energy saving contracting in Bremen," says Martin Grocholl, Managing Director of the climate protection agency energiekonsens. "This model offers enormous opportunities for companies and institutions in Bremen. The modernization of the existing buildings is accompanied by high investment costs, but is indispensable if we want to achieve our climate protection goals. With ESC, owners of large building complexes can minimize the cost and risk of such measures."
The savings at the university will be achieved firstly by replacing two ventilation systems in the UFT building and optimizing the heating distribution in the NW1 building. In addition, more than 8,000 lighting points were exchanged in various buildings of the university. LED retrofit lamps were predominantly used. The Barkhof secondary school also benefited from this project as the complete heating system and distribution were renewed.