Eaga to cut power companies’ carbon emissions

Jul 4 2008 by Andrew Mernin, The Journal

GREEN support services firm eaga has landed a £200m contract with Scottish Power to help the energy provider cut its carbon emissions.

The Newcastle company has agreed in principle to handle Scottish Power’s Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) set by the Government.

The deal is the first of its kind and may be followed by similar contracts with other energy suppliers since eaga already has framework agreements to work on CERT obligations with five other major power companies. All UK energy suppliers have regulatory obligations under CERT, requiring them to achieve lifetime reductions in UK household carbon emissions of more than 150 million tonnes over three years.

The CERT regulations look set to become increasingly lucrative for Eaga and the collective spend under CERT to 2011 is forecast to reach almost £3bn.

Under the regulations at least 40% of carbon savings must go to priority groups of low income and elderly consumers.

To reach as many households and property types as possible CERT will also look to offer additional technologies such as external wall insulation, renewable energy options and even water-saving measures.

Chief Executive John Clough MBE said: “This ground-breaking partnership with Scottish Power clearly demonstrates our outsourcing abilities and, as planned, utilises the strong organic growth platform we have built within eaga.

“We are uniquely placed in this market due to our nationwide delivery platform and detailed knowledge of the thermal efficiency of more than a quarter of the UK’s housing stock.”

Eaga employs around 4,000 people spread between its Newcastle headquarters and 50 bases across the UK, as well as operations in Ireland, Canada and India.

Northumbrian John Clough was named in the latest edition of The Journal’s 500 of the Most Influential People in the North East supplement earlier this month. To search through the list go to nebusiness.co.uk