The transition to net zero presents a complex challenge for the UK property sector. And, in its report, the British Property Federation (BPF), cites a lack of access to energy consumption data as a major limitation, preventing the property sector from achieving its decarbonisation goals.
As a potential solution to this, the report acknowledges the value of Perseus. Recognising the project’s value in offering a reliable model for data sharing, the report views Perseus as a potential bridge for the property sector’s data gap. What’s more, with the Perseus pilot fast approaching, the project serves as an inspiring example, holding the potential to accelerate decarbonisation in the property sector and beyond.
The energy data deficit
The property sector’s data deficit is nuanced. While owner-occupiers are able to access energy consumption data with relative ease, the same can not be said for tenant and landlord, where the sharing of data is far more restricted. According to the report, this is due to privacy laws that limit data-sharing capabilities and make it difficult for landlords to gather and track energy usage effectively. The issue becomes especially problematic when considering that over half of UK commercial real estate and one third of the residential sector are tenanted.
The report explains that “within the energy sector, Ofgem has identified licensees who are subject to data sharing regulations, which does not typically include property owners. This results in a situation where there is currently no legislation requiring the exchange of energy consumption data between property owners and occupiers.”
Perseus
With this in mind, the report indicates the need for a framework that facilitates data sharing, looking to Perseus as a prime example. If Perseus’s model of facilitating data sharing between SME and bank could be applied to the real estate sector, then data from tenants could be securely shared with landlords, ensuring energy consumption is monitored and decarbonisation efforts are tracked.
“(Perseus) demonstrates that setting up a governance framework and automated processes to build trust between stakeholders and to facilitate data sharing is possible from the perspective of the finance and banking industry. A similar framework could also be applied to the real estate sector to facilitate data sharing between tenants and their landlords, while ensuring that the data will be shared securely and used for the sole intended purpose of enabling the net zero transition.”