International ESCO Symposium 2025 – Celebrating Success Stories: Showcase of ESCO Projects

Moderated by Yasemin Somuncu  (Secretary General, EYODER), this final session of the symposium celebrated successful ESCO projects from around the world. The panel featured representatives from Lumenstream (UK/Ireland), Energisa (Türkiye), Clean Energy Business Council (UAE), and the ESCO Association of Thailand, each sharing real-world experiences, lessons learned, and innovative models that are driving energy efficiency and sustainability.

Key Insights by Speaker

Alistair Brown – CEO, Lumenstream (UK/Ireland)

• Founded Lumenstream in 2019 to offer lighting-as-a-service using an ESCO model.
• Faced early challenges in securing project capital due to the “chicken-and-egg” problem of needing a pipeline to attract financing.
• Overcame this by building a robust project pipeline and securing venture capital and infrastructure funding from Siemens, Aquila Capital, and others.
• Emphasised the importance of data-driven KPIs, automated project development, and aggregation of multi-site clients to scale operations.

Bahadır Koçan – Energisa (Türkiye)

• Energisa operates across energy generation, distribution, and customer solutions, including ESCO and super ESCO models.
• Delivered large-scale projects such as:
  • A Guinness World Record solar installation on Galatasaray Stadium.
  • A 5 MW Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) waste heat recovery system.
  • A 4.5 MW heat pump system is saving millions in gas and emissions.
• Highlighted the importance of customer-centric design, performance guarantees, and taking on technical and financial risk to build trust.

Mustafa Anzi – Clean Energy Business Council & Advancing Net Zero (UAE)

• Introduced the ESCO+ model, blending shared savings, PPAs, and cooling-as-a-service into a single service-level agreement.
• Advocated for contract simplification, risk balancing, and integration of multiple technologies to meet net-zero goals.
• Emphasised the need for ESCOs to evolve and align with national and corporate decarbonization targets.

Christopher Sely – ESCO Association of Thailand

• Shared Thailand’s 25-year ESCO journey, with 50 member companies and $250M in registered capital.
• Presented two case studies:
  • A hotel group retrofit achieved 30–42% energy savings across multiple properties.
  • A shopping mall chiller plant upgrade using digital twin technology and IPMVP-based M&V.
• Highlighted the diversity of ESCO models in Thailand, including leasing, guaranteed savings, cooling-as-a-service, and solar PPAs.

Common Themes and Takeaways

• Aggregation of projects and clients is key to scaling and attracting finance.
• Blended models (ESCO+, PPA, cooling-as-a-service) offer flexibility and risk-sharing.
• Data, digital tools, and automation are essential for scaling and improving performance.
• Customer trust and education are critical, especially in volatile or emerging markets.
• Policy support and regulatory clarity are needed to unlock long-term ESCO investment.

Conclusion

This session showcased how ESCOs are not only delivering measurable energy savings but also transforming business models, leveraging finance, and driving innovation in the clean energy transition. From lighting-as-a-service startups to national-scale super ESCOs, the stories shared demonstrated that ESCOs can thrive when they combine technical excellence, financial creativity, and customer-centric thinking.

The panellists emphasised that the future of ESCOs lies in collaboration, standardisation, and adaptability—whether through new contract models, digital platforms, or cross-sector partnerships. As the world moves toward net-zero, ESCOs will play a pivotal role in making energy efficiency bankable, scalable, and impactful.