Enact Energy has won a contract with the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) to deliver Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation (ECO) services under an exclusive white label partnership.
The new service targets private landlords and tenants and the aim is to upgrade 10,000 properties in a deal that could be worth up to £100m over the next five years.

Energy efficiency company Enact has been working with over 100 Local Authorities since 1996 and is currently managing the home efficiency services for Marks and Spencer and Tesco.

The RLA service is due to start in early November, initially offering free and grant funded insulation and heating works through ECO and then expanding to offer Green Deal packages next year.

Although the Green Deal packages will start in January, Green Deal Finance is not expected to be available until April or May 2013. In the meantime, landlords will be encouraged to take advantage of the ECO grants and could consider funding any financial contribution through existing savings or via an extension to their mortgage.

RLA chair, Alan Ward, said: 'Green Deal and ECO offers landlords a significant opportunity to improve the energy efficiency of their properties but the legislation and processes are complicated and we believed there was a requirement for a service which understands the unique needs of both our landlord members and their tenants.'

He continued: 'Enact Energy was selected by the RLA due to the significant experience it has in managing similar home efficiency services for some of the UK's largest retailers and due to the work it has done with Local Authorities which includes a number of projects aimed specifically at the private rental sector.'

With changes in legislation meaning that landlords will be unable to reasonably refuse a tenant's request for energy efficiency upgrades funded through Green Deal or ECO by 2016, and a ban on rental properties which do not meet a minimum EPC rating of E by 2018, the private rental sector looks set to become a significant growth area for energy efficiency and renewable energy works, according to Enact Energy.