DB Energy executes the first ESCO project under partnership with Susi Partners AG - Investment for EUR 6,3 million in improving energy efficiency for malting Soufflet Polska Sp. z o.o.

DB Energy has signed an agreement for the implementation of a comprehensive energy efficiency project for Słodownia Soufflet Polska sp. z o.o., an agri-food company. The investment worth EUR 6,3 million includes the development and installation of a cogeneration system, cooperating with process heat recovery for the needs of the Poznań plant. The agreement will be executed in the ESCO model financed from the first utilisation of the EUR 20 million ESCO facility agreed between DB Energy and SUSI Partners AG. The remuneration due to DB Energy for the settlement of the project - payable over 10 years - will be generated from the cost savings generated for the customer. The project will reduce CO₂ emissions by 9.5 thousand tonnes per annum, which corresponds to the annual average emission of over 1.5 thousand residential homes in Poland.

- In line with DB Energy's development strategy, we are gradually expanding our ESCO project portfolio. The contract for Soufflet Polska is an important project, as it combines our advisory competence with the acquisition of investment financing for the client and general contracting. Thanks to the cooperation with DB Energy, the client receives full service of the project, without incurring technical and financial risks of the investment, indicates Krzysztof Piontek, President of DB Energy.

DB Energy with another ESCO contract to be implemented

DB Energy has signed a contract for the implementation of a comprehensive energy-saving investment at the Soufflet Polska malting plant in Poznań, specialising in the production of top quality malts for the brewing industry. The investment will be carried out by DB Energy in the general contracting system over a 12-month period and will be worth EUR 6,3 million.

The agreement will be executed in the ESCO model, i.e. the value of remuneration for DB Energy will depend on the cost savings generated for the customer and will constitute a percentage thereof. The terms and conditions of the agreement do not differ from those standard for this type of contracts. DB Energy will receive remuneration for the project for a period of 10 years. 

The project will reduce CO₂ emissions by 9.5 thousand tonnes per annum, which corresponds to the annual average emission of over 1.5 thousand residential homes in Poland. The project will contribute to the achievement of the objectives described in the strategic documents of the Polish Energy Policy concerning energy efficiency and emission reduction CO₂. 

Słodownia Soufflet Polska sp. z o. o. belongs to the French agri-food group Soufflet, which is the largest family company in the cereal buying industry in Europe. The group employs over 7 thousand people in eighteen countries.

The project for Słodownia Soufflet Polska is another DB Energy contract on the market of energy efficiency in industry, implemented in the ESCO formula. In 2019, DB Energy completed the modernisation of Simoldes Plasticos sp. z o.o.'s plant in Jelcz Laskowice near Wrocław.

Energy efficiency projects in the ESCO model as a way to build a competitive advantage 

- ESCO is the optimal model for implementing investments to improve the energy efficiency of companies. Thanks to the ESCO formula, the client reduces the technical risk of the investment - the ESCO partner bears full responsibility for the implementation of the project, from diagnosis, design, through execution and servicing in the long term. The ESCO also offers financial and tax optimisation of the company - the client does not engage its financial resources in the investment, says Piotr Danielski, Vice-President of DB Energy.

- Production plants should look for solutions tailored to the industry in which they operate and identify such energy efficiency improvement projects where spectacular savings will be visible. Such solutions are provided by DB Energy as part of ESCO projects, concludes President Danielski.

DB Energy, the industry leader in energy efficiency services for industry in Poland, implements energy efficiency improvement projects in large and medium-sized industrial plants, from the identification of energy efficiency improvement projects to their design and implementation, including financing in ESCO (long-term financing) or EPC (time-based financing) models, as well as customer energy efficiency management, including ongoing monitoring of industrial installations and their predictive maintenance based on the DiagSys system. During 10 years of activity, the company has conducted over 1000 energy efficiency audits, generating investment projects worth over EUR 700 million.

On 29 October, DB Energy has signed an agreement with the Swiss infrastructure fund manager SUSI Partners AG, to finance energy efficiency projects in the ESCO model – the first such complex ESCO financing strategy in Poland. The agreement will allow a total of at least EUR 20 million over two years. For the purposes of the cooperation, the Company has identified 30 investment projects with an estimated value of nearly EUR 40 million. The Company's development strategy assumes a gradual increase in the share of investment projects in the area of energy efficiency, with particular emphasis on ESCO projects in DB Energy's portfolio.