Mitie and SDCL work together to help customers fund and deliver their sustainable projects

Mitie, the UK’s leading facilities management business, and Sustainable Development Capital LLP (SDCL), an investment firm specialising in energy efficiency and decentralised energy generation, have launched a new partnership to help both public and private sector organisations plan their decarbonisation roadmap and fund the low carbon equipment and technology they need to make their sites net zero.

Through this partnership, Mitie and SDCL will help organisations looking to roll out equipment, such as solar panels to generate renewable energy on site, as well as air and ground source heat pumps to switch buildings from gas to electricity-based heating systems, to decarbonise their buildings and improve their energy efficiency. With research showing that Finance Executives believe that limited expertise (50%) and access to capital (34%) are among the top factors limiting their business’ investment in decarbonisation¹, this partnership will help remove some of the major roadblocks in many organisations’ net zero journeys.

Mitie will use its engineering and energy management expertise to help customers manage their sustainability projects from end to end, starting with the auditing of sites to collect baseline energy consumption and carbon emissions data to identify the right solutions for each building. Mitie will then use this roadmap to help its customers procure, install, and maintain the equipment to decarbonise and make sites more energy efficient. SDCL will selectively provide capital to fund the delivery and installation of the solutions identified by Mitie, so that organisations aren’t encumbered by large upfront capital investments. SDCL will maintain long-term ownership of the projects, making them available for use under an energy services agreement.

Pradyumna Pandit, Managing Director, Energy and Sustainability, Mitie, said:

“Tackling the built environment is essential for decarbonising Britain. There are many technologies available today that are proven to help businesses reduce costs and carbon emissions from their sites, however large upfront capital costs mean that many are delaying their actions towards reaching net zero.

“This partnership with SDCL will help more businesses overcome these challenges and go further, faster towards their net zero transition while ensuring their operational costs stay on track. We look forward to using our energy management and engineering expertise to help customers with every aspect of their decarbonisation journey.”

Jonathan Maxwell, CEO and Founder, Sustainable Development Capital LLP, said:

“Investing in decentralised and efficient energy solutions can contribute to over half of global carbon emission reduction targets by 2030. Onsite energy and energy efficient measures are commercially and technologically proven and capable of implementation at scale today.

“SDCL has worked with Mitie for many years and is pleased to be entering into a partnership to provide cheaper, cleaner and more reliable energy solutions to businesses.”

Mitie offers a wide range of sustainability services, enabling businesses to take a holistic approach to sustainability. Decarbonisation projects can be designed to help organisations make the most out of the funding while ensuring that they can be incorporated into their wider net zero strategy, covering fleet, waste management and landscaping.

This initiative is part of Mitie’s Plan Zero commitment to reach net zero for its operations by 2025 and to help its customers implement solutions to reduce their carbon emissions. Mitie has helped customers cut over 353,000 tonnes of carbon, the equivalent to around 11 times Mitie’s own annual emissions, in the last decade. Mitie has also announced that it will be rolling out solutions to decarbonise four of its properties by the end of the Financial Year 2022 and to make an additional 14 sites net zero every year until all its portfolio of more than 50 buildings have been decarbonised.

Notes to editors

Organisations interested in more information should visit www.planzerocarbon.com.

1. Research of 100 people responsible for sustainable investment in their business carried out by Verdantix in June 2021 on behalf of Mitie

Eligibility for the SDCL programme will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

 About Mitie

Founded in 1987, Mitie’s job is to look after places where Britain works and is the leading facilities management company in the UK. We offer a range of services to Central Government and Defence customers; Communities (Healthcare, Education and Local Authorities); and Technical Services (Engineering Services, Energy, Water and Real Estate Services) and Business Services (Security, Cleaning and Office Services) to Private Sector clients in Financial Services, Manufacturing, Transport, Retail and Telecoms and increasingly to the public sector. Finally, our Specialist Services (Care & Custody, Landscapes and Waste Management) division serves both the public and private sector in these niche businesses.

Mitie acquired Interserve’s FM business in December 2020 and now employs 75,000 people we are the champion of the ‘Front-Line Heroes’ who have kept Britain working during the COVID-19 pandemic. We take care of our customers’ people and buildings, through the ‘Science of Service’, delivering essential services and deploying industry leading technology to create safe and effective workspaces.

The business continues to execute its technology-led strategy and in the past six months has received multiple awards.

Find out more at www.mitie.com.

About SDCL

Sustainable Development Capital LLP (“SDCL”), an investment firm established in 2007, with a proven track record of investment in energy efficiency and decentralised generation projects in the UK, Continental Europe, North America and Asia.

SDCL is headquartered in London and also operates worldwide from offices in New York, Dublin, Madrid, Hong Kong and Singapore. SDCL is authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Further information can be found at www.sdclgroup.com.

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Alison Ring, Director Public Sector and Tax, ICAEW in conversation with Jonathan Maxwell, CEO of Sustainable Development Capital LLP, to gain a better understanding of how energy efficiency initiatives can be financed in all sectors and what the solutions are to the problems of inefficient energy systems.

Hear from Jonathan whether policy making and regulation is moving in the right direction to create greater sustainable solutions and why the energy model needs to be rebuilt.

This on-demand session is part of the ICAEW Climate Summit, to view the full programme of events please visit the event page.

Link to Video

Jonathan Maxwell, CEO and Founder of Sustainable Development Capital LLP, said the crisis was being caused by a ‘number of unconnected issues occurring at once.

He told MailOnline: ‘The issues include high natural gas prices – the result of a number of factors including winter supply concerns, a storm in the US shutting down a gas supply terminal in Texas, disruption to the UK’s main power cable from France and historic lows in windspeed.

‘This is the latest in a long line of energy disruptions in the UK and provides further evidence that the current energy system is no longer fit for purpose.

‘A fundamental change is required to ensure a cheaper, cleaner and more reliable energy future that meets the UK’s objectives for COP26.’

Mr Maxwell suggested the centralised nature of the National Grid had exacerbated the problems.

‘The solutions are relatively simple – reduce energy wastage by generating cheaper, cleaner and more reliable power and heat closer to the point of use, improve energy efficiency, energy storage and backup solutions and enable smarter use of renewable energy sources, which will all reduce the reliance on natural gas.

‘This serves to reduce the significant generation, transmission and distribution losses associated with a centralised grid, saving money and reducing the carbon intensity associated with large energy-users.’

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