The city of Sint-Niklaas signed a Building Performance Contract (BPC) – an innovative energy performance contract – with the company Luminus Solutions, guaranteeing a 39% saving on the energy costs of its largest buildings.

Higher energy savings

Factor4 supervised the project and is also the creator of the Building Performance Contracting approach. In a BPC project, energy savings will typically be half as much as in a conventional energy performance contract ('EPC' or 'OEPC'), where on average only 25% energy savings are achieved. A Building Performance Contract not only looks at the profitability of energy-saving investments within the term of the contract, but also - and this is new - the residual value of the installations taken care of at the end of the contract is charged. By taking this residual value into account, an ESCO will also consider interesting long-term structural investments – such as insulation or in-depth HVAC renovations – which usually have a payback period that is longer than the contract term. The result is therefore higher guaranteed energy savings, more positive climate impact and an additional positive effect for the urban budget.

Bart De Bruyne, Alderman, Sint Niklaas

"In order to get all Sint Niklazen residents on board with our story, we as a city must set a good example. That is why we started looking for a suitable partner together with facilitator Factor4 to make our city buildings more energy efficient. We are therefore pleased that, together with Luminus Solutions, we can prepare our city for a climate-neutral future over the next 10 years."

Also better maintenance and higher circularity

The guaranteed residual value also significantly improves the quality of the maintenance of the installations. For example, in the Sint-Niklaas project, Luminus Solutions guarantees that 64% of the installations will have a condition score of 'very good' or 'good' at the end of the contract (standardized concepts, NEN 2767). With a conventional EPC this is 0%. Better maintenance not only increases the operational reliability and comfort of the buildings, it also extends the lifespan of the installations and contributes to a circular economy through the reduced amount of waste.

Comfort satisfaction as performance

The impact of the measures implemented on the comfort satisfaction of users will also be measured during the project. A Comfortmeter is used for this, an online tool developed by Factor4 in collaboration with including the KULeuven. Depending on the measured satisfaction score, Luminus Solutions will receive a bonus or pay a penalty. This additional performance objective is also unique in an EPC project.

More information:

Factor4, Johan Coolen, johan.coolen@factor4.eu, +32 494 72 97 95