About EEGO
What is Energy Efficiency in Government Operations?
The Energy Efficiency in Government Operations (EEGO) policy forms part of the Australian Government’s climate change strategy. Its purpose is to reduce the energy consumption of Australian Government operations with particular emphasis on building energy efficiency.
The EEGO policy is administered by the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DCCEE).
Do I need to comply with EEGO?
All Commonwealth Agencies, covered by the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, as well as statutory bodies covered by the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 who derive more than 50 per cent of their funding either directly or indirectly from the Commonwealth, are required to comply with EEGO policy.
What are the requirements of EEGO?
Energy Intensities
A key objective of the EEGO policy is for Government office buildings in each portfolio to achieve the following energy intensity targets by June 2011:
- 7,500 MJ/person per annum for tenant light and power.
- 400 MJ/m2 per annum for central services.
Green Lease Schedules
Where an agency or statutory body covered by EEGO enters into a new lease for office space that is larger than 2000m2, for a term of more than two years, it is a requirement under EEGO that a Green Lease Schedule be included with the lease.
A Green Lease Schedule forms part of the lease and is designed to provide an effective legal and management mechanism for building tenants and owners to maximise the energy efficiency potential of their buildings in a collaborative manner.
Where applicable, a Green Lease Schedule needs to stipulate a NABERS Energy rating of at least 4.5 Stars Energy (exclusive of GreenPower) for both the Base Building and Tenancy, where between 50 per cent and 100 per cent of the building is occupied, or 4.5 Stars Tenancy where less than 50 per cent of the building is occupied. Where leases do not meet these requirements a formal Green Lease Schedule exception from the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency will need to be sought.
Lighting Requirements
Office spaces of 2000m2 or larger Net Lettable Area (NLA) are required to achieve a 4.5 star NABERS Tenancy rating or above. To do this, energy consumption for office lighting will usually have to be less than 10 watts per square metre.
Office spaces with less than 2000m2 NLA, or where major refurbishments are undertaken, are required to have lighting that consumes a maximum of 10 watts per square metre.
Best practice energy consumption related to lighting for office buildings can be as low as 6 watts per square metre for ‘open plan’ areas (for example, space that excludes meeting rooms and smaller individual offices).
Separate Digital Metering
Adequate energy metering needs to be available to meet EEGO requirements relating to NABERS Energy Tenancy and Base Building ratings for office buildings. For the purposes of NABERS Energy ratings it is usually preferable to have separate digital revenue meters installed to separate Base Building and Tenancy use and where there are shared facilities especially where there are areas other than office space that may need to be excluded from a NABERS office assessment. The basic prerequisite for adequate metering, in terms of NABERS Energy assessments, is that a NABERS assessor must be able to reliably verify the information derived from the existing onsite energy metering.
In addition to metering requirements relating to NABERS assessment, EEGO policy requires that all Government buildings with leases of less than 2000m2, or which have less than two year terms, have separate digital revenue metering for Base Building and Tenancy requirements installed so as to best manage and monitor their energy use.
Annual Reporting of Energy Use
All Commonwealth Agencies, covered by the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, as well as statutory bodies covered by the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 who derive more than 50 per cent of their funding either directly or indirectly from the Commonwealth, are required to report their energy use to the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency.
Energy use reporting is published in the Energy Use in the Australian Government’s Operations report.
Office Equipment & Appliances – Energy Star
EEGO policy requires that agencies purchase energy efficient equipment that is Energy Star compliant.
To achieve improvements in energy consumption, and to improve a NABERS Tenancy rating, agencies and statutory bodies should also optimise the amount of office equipment and appliances they use. For example, the Australian Government ICT Sustainability Plan 2010 – 2015 indicates that portfolios should aim for a ratio of one printer per twenty desktops, or better. Other energy management measures relating to office equipment and appliances will also be beneficial, such as automatically shutting down commuters, monitors, and multi-function devices when they are left idle for long periods.
Department of Defence
In addition to other requirements under EEGO, the Department of Defence has committed to:
- developing a comprehensive energy management strategy; and
- progressively installing sub-meters at Defence bases as part of a coordinated programme in order to better monitor and manage energy and to more accurately report against specific end use categories.