Guide: Energy Performance Contracting for Streetlight Refurbishment

Old street lighting systems can account for 30-50% of municipalities’ total electricity consumption. Yet, current technologies offer 30-70% energy savings potentials. These savings potentials have been recognised and incorporated into European policies: EU Regulation 245/2009 sets phasing out requirements for nearly 80 % of all currently used lamps types between 2012 and 2017. This means that these lamp types will no longer be available on the market for purchase.

Energy Performance Contracting (EPC) offers municipalities an innovative, but still under-used, solution to finance a transition to energy-efficient street lighting with energy savings guarantees. Street lighting is a good “learning and testing ground” for EPC due to its lower technical and economic complexity compared to building-related EPC. Furthermore, the recent market introduction of LED technology offers high energy and cost savings with comparatively short pay-back times.

The project “Streetlight-EPC” is creating demand and supply of street lighting EPC projects in 9 European regions (Upper Austria, Carlow & Kilkenny County, North-West Croatia, South Bohemia, Pomerania, South-East Sweden, Podravje, Macedonia, North/Central Spain) by setting up regional EPC facilitation services (helpdesk) which are providing one-to-one support to both municipalities and SMEs as potential ESCOs.