Guesthouse owners and Users Embarking on a Sustainable Transition (GUEST)
About this good practice
In recent years, the number of guesthouses in Malta has grown significantly, but their adoption of sustainable energy and water practices has not kept pace. A number of challenges have been identified, as follows:
• Insufficient time for owners to dedicate to energy studies.
• Inadequate technical knowledge.
• Restricted financial means.
• Unawareness of financial schemes available.
• Apprehension of funding application complexities.
This good practice addresses these challenges through the provision of free services of certified energy auditors, appointed by The Energy & Water Agency, who carry out detailed analysis of energy and water consumption and propose tailormade effective solutions to reduce the overall carbon footprint of the guesthouses.
The Agency follows up by identifying the most suitable funding scheme and provides hand-holding for interested guesthouses to apply for funds and implement the energy efficiency solutions. The process included an invitation to all guesthouses to participate, and following a simple application, an introductory meeting was held with each applicant to explain the process. At the end of each energy audit exercise, another meeting was held to explain the findings and improvement opportunities, including the possibility of applying for funding from identified support schemes.
Expert opinion
Resources needed
Total budget: 81,228 Euro (National Funds)
Sponsored energy audits (x28): 60,401 Euro
Guest Welcome Packs (1750 kids bags, 1300 towels, 1750 Tote bags): 15,880 Euro)
Technical support: 1,997 Euro,
Sector report: 2,950 Euro
Human resources: 1 coordinator and the contracted energy auditors.
Evidence of success
• 28 (15% of total) guesthouses participated.
• 6 applications for funding under the EENergy programme (Enterprise Europe Network).
• 4 successfully secured funding for applying energy efficiency and renewables. • Provided simple remedies to common issues resulting in savings for:
- excess water flow rates (-21,817 kWh).
- set temperatures for air-conditioning (-16,721 kWh) and water heaters (-21,133 kWh)
• Overall 8.1% annual electricity savings (23.62 tonnes of CO2 emission)
Potential for learning or transfer
- Prior engagement with stakeholders to design this initiative in line with their needs is a key success point.
- Provision of free energy audits encouraged guesthouses to take the first step to better understand their energy profile.
- Introductory and closing face-to-face meetings with guesthouse owners is key to break energy saving misconceptions and improve understanding of the energy audit report.
- Hand-holding of interested participants to apply for financial support has facilitated the implementation of the energy auditor’s proposed energy efficiency and water improvements.
- Direct engagement with the guesthouse owners through a ‘One point of contact’ throughout the project facilitated communication and building of an effective relationship.
- A follow-up conference bringing together all guesthouses supported exchange of experience between stakeholders.
- The project provided valuable information to produce a final sector report on energy and water use in guesthouses.
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Good practice owner
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