The Benchmarking Energy Sustainability Targets project, better known as the BEST project, is a result of a partnership between the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association (MHRA) and the Government. Its scope is to position Malta’s hotel industry as the leader in energy efficiency for the Mediterranean region.
The project includes (a) a legal study, (b) a technical study and (c) a Web app and portal. These cover the implementation of the benchmarking reward scheme as well as the monitoring and controlling software.
A points award system will also be devised. This will be used to distribute rewards based on a yearly budget allocated by the Government. The schemes’ benchmarking and ranking system will award points to Hotels according to their:
- Energy efficiency KPIs
- Energy Efficiency projects undertaken the previous year
Award calculations will depend on the performance of the hotels vis a vis the threshold within their group. For instance, should the hotels perform below the threshold of their group, they will not receive any points. On the other hand, if the hotels perform within the top category, they will be awarded 15 points.
Funding is subject to hotel participation in the BEST project. A sample of hotels from various categories will also be selected to pilot the system. Hotel involvement will include the following:
- Provision of Energy, Water & Fuel data
- Provision of Area, Guest Occupancy & Guest Night data
- Attendance at working seminars organized to provide training.
The benefit is limited to €30,000 per property per calendar year. The sum can be used to cover between 30% and 50% of the cost of any authorised Energy Efficiency project. This, depending on the hotel size and category as determined by the EU criterion for Small, Medium and Large enterprises.
Further, the authorisation to use the said funds will be given by the Energy and Water Agency upon presentation of a Report by a Warranted Engineer including:
- The nature and scope of the project and the targeted area of Energy Efficiency
- A detailed state of play including energy performance (before the implementation of the project)
- An estimate of the gain in efficiency after the project is implemented
- A timeline for implementation
- A minimum of two (2) quotes provided by independent organisations which must not have any direct or indirect links to the hotel or its directors.
© Firstbridge 2019