CENSATIMAll guides →Professional Services · EU Taxonomy Activity Guide
Energy performance services under the EU Taxonomy
Engineers, energy auditors, ESCOs and technical consultancies can be Taxonomy-aligned businesses: professional services related to the energy performance of buildings (CCM 9.3) qualify where the services target the qualifying improvements, energy audits and EPC assessments, design and engineering of efficiency measures, energy performance contracting, and building management services aimed at the defined performance outcomes.
Why this activity matters
Building decarbonisation runs on services as much as equipment: someone audits the stock, designs the retrofit, structures the performance contract and commissions the systems. The Taxonomy recognises this with a services activity tied to building energy performance, which lets the professional layer of the renovation wave, from energy audit firms to ESCO contract operators, classify the relevant turnover as aligned.
The qualification is purposive: the services must relate to the energy performance of buildings and target the qualifying improvements (the measures and thresholds of the buildings and installation activities), so a consultancy’s aligned share follows from its service mix. For ESCOs, energy performance contracting with guaranteed savings is the paradigm case. This activity also matters strategically for professional firms in CSRD scope: it is often their only material route to a non-zero alignment KPI, which makes a defensible assessment of the service portfolio genuinely valuable.
What alignment requires
Purposive service-scope tests tied to building performance. In summary:
| Area | What is required (summarised) |
|---|---|
| Qualifying services | Technical and professional services related to building energy performance: energy audits and EPC assessments, design and engineering of qualifying efficiency and renewables measures, commissioning, and energy management services. |
| Performance contracting | Energy performance contracting (ESCO models) qualifies where structured around delivering the qualifying improvements, with the contract and savings basis as evidence. |
| Allocation | Mixed-service firms allocate: aligned turnover follows the share of services within the qualifying scope, engagement type by engagement type. |
Summarised for orientation; the assessment itself applies the full criteria text of the Delegated Acts as amended.
Where DNSH scrutiny falls
Proportionate CRVA for the service organisation; light-touch for professional firms.
Generally light for pure services; where services extend into installation works, the works inherit the relevant installation DNSH.
Documentation that typically supports the assessment
- Service line descriptions mapped to the qualifying scope
- Revenue split by service type for allocation
- Sample engagements: audit reports, retrofit designs, performance contracts
- For ESCOs: contract structures and guaranteed-savings bases
How Censatim assesses it
Service-firm assessments are scope and allocation exercises: our questioning maps the service lines against the qualifying descriptions, fixes the revenue allocation, and reviews sample engagements as evidence. For professional firms this is frequently the difference between a zero and a defensible non-zero alignment KPI, which is exactly the outcome CSRD reporting teams need documented.
Censatim is an expert-built EU Taxonomy assessment tool: describe the asset or activity in plain language, upload supporting documents, and answer a short set of targeted questions. The result is a criterion-by-criterion view with an In-line / Partial / Not aligned / Undetermined rating and a confidence level for each dimension. See the full methodology.
Frequently asked questions
Assess energy performance services now
Free eligibility in under a minute. The sector and activity are pre-filled for you.