Mandatory energy audits, explained
Large companies in Ireland have had to audit their energy use every four years since 2014. The rules are now changing so that what counts is how much energy you use, not how many people you employ.
Who has to audit today
Under the Energy Efficiency Directive, as brought into Irish law by S.I. 426 of 2014, an energy audit every four years is compulsory for any enterprise that is not an SME. In practice that means a company with 250 or more employees, or one with annual turnover above €50 million and a balance sheet above €43 million.
Public sector bodies with more than 500 square metres of floor area, or more than €35,000 a year in energy spend, are also obligated.
Obligated companies cannot use the SEAI Support Scheme for Energy Audits voucher, because the audit is already a legal requirement for them. They pay for it themselves.
What changes under the recast directive
The recast Energy Efficiency Directive (EU 2023/1791) replaces the company-size test with an energy-use test, applied across all energy carriers together:
- Average annual consumption above 10 TJ (about 2.8 GWh) over the previous three years: an energy audit every four years, unless you run an energy management system
- Average annual consumption above 85 TJ (about 23.6 GWh): a certified energy management system, such as ISO 50001
- Under the directive, first audits on the new test are due by 11 October 2026, and energy management systems by 11 October 2027
- After each audit, a concrete action plan for the recommendations, presented to management and published in the annual report
What this means for hotel and restaurant groups
A group with several hotels can cross the 10 TJ line on energy use alone, whatever its headcount. Equally, a company that was obligated because of its size but uses relatively little energy may find the obligation changes.
Irish legislation is being updated to match the directive, so check the current SEAI guidance or ask us before you plan around a date. If you are close to either threshold, it is worth measuring your consumption properly now rather than estimating it.
What a good mandatory audit gives you
The legal minimum is a report. The useful version is a costed list of measures, ranked by payback, that your finance director can act on, and a measured baseline so you can prove the savings at the next audit four years later.
That is the case for pairing the audit with continuous monitoring: the second audit then starts from real data, not from scratch.
Common questions
Do large companies in Ireland have to do an energy audit?
Yes. Companies that are not SMEs (250 or more employees, or turnover above €50 million and balance sheet above €43 million) must carry out an energy audit every four years under S.I. 426 of 2014. The recast Energy Efficiency Directive moves this to an energy-use test: above 10 TJ a year on average, an audit every four years unless you run an energy management system.
Does ISO 50001 exempt a company from mandatory energy audits?
A certified energy management system such as ISO 50001 is the accepted alternative to repeated audits for companies under the 85 TJ line, and is required above it.
Can an obligated company use the SEAI €2,000 audit voucher?
No. The SEAI Support Scheme for Energy Audits is not open to obligated entities.
How much is 10 TJ of energy?
About 2.8 million kWh a year, counting electricity, gas, oil and other fuels together. A large hotel or a group of hotels can reach that level.
Want this applied to your building?
Start with an energy audit. If you spend over ten thousand euro a year on energy, the SEAI grant covers most of the cost.