A survey by document management software company, Version One, highlights that over a quarter of UK senior finance professionals are unaware of the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme (formerly known as the Carbon Reduction Commitment). Version One carried out the research with 139 senior finance professionals (finance directors and managers) across a range of UK public sector and private sector organisations.

The survey reveals that 27% of senior finance professionals admit that they haven’t heard of the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme. 17% of respondents state that they are aware of the Scheme and have investigated whether their organisation qualifies or not, with almost half (48%) stating that they are aware of the CRC Scheme but are unsure whether their organisation qualifies. Oddly, the remaining 8% admit that they “don’t know” whether they have heard about the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme or not!

The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme is a UK regulatory requirement which came into effect in April 2010 and encompasses the monitoring, measurement and reporting of carbon emissions as well as the buying and selling of carbon emission allowances. Qualification for the CRC is based solely on electricity consumption, but once in the scheme, companies need to measure and report on emissions from electricity, gas and static fuel consumption.

Qualifying companies have until 30 September 2010 to register with The Environment Agency, however due to the Agency needing to run pre-registration checks on businesses’ senior directors, qualifying organisations need to approach The Environment Agency at the beginning of September if they are to register in time. Any qualifying organisation that misses the deadline faces an initial £5,000 fine and a daily charge of £500 until registered (up to a maximum of £45,000).

Julian Buck, Managing Director of Version One, comments, “With the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme having considerable financial implications, it’s worrying that nearly a quarter of financial professionals surveyed haven’t even heard of the CRC. Qualifying organisations that fail to register for the scheme over the next few weeks risk significant fines as well as reputational damage if they are exposed as being non-compliant.”

Organisations interested in further information about the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme, including which technologies qualifying organisations should consider implementing to aid compliance, should download Version One’s white paper, The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme: A Practical Guide