CLP steps up retro-commissioning support to help businesses cut energy use

CLP Power has stepped up efforts to promote retro-commissioning in Hong Kong, bringing together government officials and industry representatives to share practical ways of improving building energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions.

The utility hosted the CLP Retro-commissioning Symposium on September 29, with discussions covering industry experience, energy-saving results and the wider adoption of retro-commissioning, or RCx.

RCx involves reviewing and fine-tuning existing building systems to improve their performance without necessarily requiring major equipment replacement. The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department describes it as a systematic and cost-effective way to identify operational improvements that can lower energy use and costs.

The initiative also aligns with Hong Kong’s First Five-Year Plan for 2026 to 2030, which calls for green, energy-saving and carbon-reduction retrofits in new and existing buildings as part of efforts to improve building energy efficiency.

Director of Electrical and Mechanical Services Raymond Poon Kwok-ying said RCx was gaining wider recognition as a way to optimize building services systems and reduce emissions.

“We are pleased to see RCx gaining increasing recognition and acceptance as an effective strategy for optimising building energy performance, improving the efficiency of building services systems and reducing carbon emissions,” he said.

CLP Power managing director Joseph Law Ka-chun said the company had worked with the department to encourage wider use of RCx while helping train industry professionals.

“Over the years, through our training programmes, we have helped nurture RCx professionals, build industry expertise and practical experience, and enhance businesses’ capabilities in improving their energy performance and strengthening their operational resilience,” Law said.

CLP Power launched its Retro-commissioning Charter Programme in 2021 under the CLP Community Energy Saving Fund. The company said it has committed more than HK$5 million to the program, training around 900 practitioners from some 220 companies and organizations.

More than 200 RCx projects have since been implemented, generating cumulative electricity savings of over 54 million kilowatt-hours — equivalent to the annual consumption of about 14,000 households, according to CLP Power.

This year, the utility also introduced a Retro-commissioning Audit Programme, providing participating organizations with free audits and subsidies for energy-saving improvements.

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