ista firmly on course for climate-neutrality by 2030: share of renewable energies increased to 73%

The new Progress Report clearly shows the positive development: according to the Progress Report, ista reduced its carbon footprint by 294 tonnes to 7,261 tonnes in 2022 compared with the previous year. At the same time, the percentage of electricity from renewable energies in its properties increased from 42.9% to 73%. “We as a company have set ourselves ambitious goals and we are on the right track to achieving them,” says Hagen Lessing, CEO ista. “However, for us it is not enough just to bring our own carbon footprint down to zero: as a real estate service provider, we also see it as our responsibility to help reduce CO₂ emissions in the building sector. We are firm believers in smart digital solutions that help landlords and users to achieve sustainability goals.”

Higher percentage of radio-readable meters

Meters that can be read remotely by radio reduce car travel and are the basis for providing sub-annual information on consumption. The proportion of fully radio devices was 48.1% in 2022 – that is an increase of five percentage points compared with the previous year.

Smart solutions help cut CO₂ emissions

With the ESG Manager (Environmental, Social, Governance), ista offers landlords and property managers a solution with which data can be managed efficiently. The tool records energy consumption, CO₂ emissions and the related costs. The EcoTrend app informs residents of a property about their monthly heat and hot water consumption and therefore meets the requirement of the latest Heating Cost Ordinance (HKVO) to provide monthly information on consumption. Landlords simply register the residents for this service on the ista Web portal. EcoTrend has already been activated for more than 1.7 million users since the beginning of 2022. The MinuteView service helps with the energy management of commercial properties, such as office buildings, shopping centres or business parks. The system records all electricity, gas, water and heat consumption data and creates transparency beyond the boundaries of a building, location and country. Practice shows that MinuteView reduces energy consumption in commercial properties by up to 15%. The system may qualify for state subsidies and is already in use with 37,000 active meter points in twelve countries.

User behaviour is a key lever for saving energy

The aim is to encourage energy-conscious behaviour with regard to CO₂ reduction and sustainability. The fact that this approach works is demonstrated in an anonymised evaluation of the ista data for gas-heated apartment buildings: in the energy crisis year 2022, seven per cent less heating energy was used, on a weather-adjusted basis, than in the previous year - presumably as a result of energy-conscious consumption behaviour. “That is a considerable saving which shows that user behaviour is a key lever for saving energy,” Hagen Lessing stresses. “The more information users have on their energy consumption, the better they can control it – and we help them to do so.”

Focus on sustainable supply chains

ista is also continuously working on reducing the CO₂ emissions of supply chains and checks every supply order with regard to emissions, costs and flexibility. The carbon footprint of its supply chain through air, sea and road freight was 1,751 tonnes in 2022. The real estate service provider already works primarily with partners who set themselves ambitious sustainability targets. In addition, ista will agree sustainability targets with selected strategic suppliers by the end of 2023.

You will find more key figures and results in the latest Progress Report 2022/23