Scaling Up Implementation and Institutional Capacity for Energy Management Systems (EnMS) in Pakistan

The German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) has commissioned the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH to implement the project "Scaling up Sustainable Energy Management Systems (EnMS) in Pakistani Cities (REEE-Scale II)", and it is being implemented since 2024. The project REEE Scale II builds on the results and lessons learned from the predecessor project, "Promotion of Renewable Energy and Efficiency Concepts in Cities and Industry in Pakistan (REEE SCALE I)". Energy costs account for approximately 40-50% of the operational expenses of water supply and sanitation services in Pakistan, largely due to inefficient energy use. These high energy expenditures place significant budgetary pressure on municipalities and limit their ability to improve service delivery. The objective of the REEE Scale II project is to address this challenge by scaling up the implementation of systematic Energy Management (EnM) in municipal organisations. By improving energy efficiency in municipal services, the project aims to reduce operational costs, strengthen financial sustainability, and enhance service performance. At the same time, increased energy efficiency will contribute to greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions, support climate mitigation efforts, and promote more climate-resilient municipal operations. To achieve this objective, the project works with partner municipal organisations, which primarily consist of water supply and sanitation companies, and targets municipal experts and managers at national, provincial, and local levels to mainstream EnMS across water supply and sanitation services in Pakistan. The National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (NEECA) serves as the lead executing agency. In addition, the project collaborates with relevant intermediaries, including provincial government agencies and municipal line departments, to embed EnMS within partner organisations and to support the development of energy efficiency strategies and organisational frameworks through tailored technical and policy recommendations. In geographical regards, implementation is primarily done in the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the project aims to strengthen both institutional and individual capacities within municipal organisations and regulatory governmental departments to enable effective implementation and long-term institutionalisation of EnMS. Furthermore, the project supports women"s representation in Pakistan"s energy sector by improving their employability and supporting their participation in energy-related roles. The project focuses on intervention areas and takes the following measures: 1. Strengthening the organisational capacities of Pakistan"s municipal bodies to implement EnMS. 2. Enhancing the professional competencies of municipal experts and managers in systematic energy management, 3. Providing design options for improved framework conditions to promote municipal energy management, including gender-responsive approaches, to municipal stakeholders in Pakistan. 4. Conducting Training Program on EnMS for recently graduated female engineers to enhance their employment prospects in the energy sector. To support municipal organisations and relevant regulatory governmental departments and authorities, to scale up EnMS in Pakistan"s municipal sector, timely, thorough, and flexible expertise and advisory services need to be provided to them to build capacities and carry out on ground EnMS implementation successfully. Hence, the GIZ project seeks to engage a highly qualified consulting firm or a consortium of firms (the "Consultant") to support the achievement of the project objectives. The services to be provided in the context of this call for tenders support the scaling up of Energy Management Systems (EnMS) in municipal organisations in Pakistan, with a particular focus on water supply and sanitation companies. The consultancy services will focus on strengthening the implementation and institutional capacity for EnMS in close cooperation with partner municipal organisations and relevant national and provincial government agencies and departments. These consultancy services will be delivered from the start of the contract until 29.02.2028. The assignment comprises of hands-on technical assistance and continuous advisory support to enable municipal management and energy teams of up to 6 partner municipal organisations to establish, operate, and continuously improve EnMS processes aligned with ISO 50001 principles. This includes support for establishing energy baselines of each partner organisation, regular monitoring and review of the established energy performance indicators (EnPI), corrective action planning, and systematic energy performance improvement. In addition, the consultancy will support partner organisations in the identification, prioritisation, and implementation of energy efficiency (EE) measures within water supply and sanitation infrastructure. This includes the development of technical EE recommendations and advisory support for their implementation. The consultancy will further assist in the preparation of bankable EE project proposals and business cases, including the technical and financial analyses required to mobilise financing for priority EE and EnM investments. To ensure long-term institutionalisation, the consultancy will develop recommendations for organisational development measures to mainstream EnMS within municipal structures. This includes strengthening internal roles and responsibilities, coordination mechanisms, and the integration of EnMS into planning, budgeting, and procurement processes. Advisory support will also be provided for the design and introduction of organisational EE incentive mechanisms to promote energy-efficient behaviour and align staff performance with energy and cost reduction objectives. Capacity development and knowledge exchange form a core component of the assignment. The aim is to ensure that, by the end of the project, municipal experts, managers, and decision-makers are equipped in terms of technical capacities to mainstream EnMS independently within Pakistan"s water supply and sanitation services. This objective remains central to all capacity development measures implemented under the assignment. Based on a structured capacity needs assessment and a corresponding capacity development strategy, the consultancy will develop relevant knowledge products and implement tailored capacity development activities, including trainings, workshops, and knowledge exchange activities, among others. These measures will strengthen competencies in EnMS implementation, energy data management and analysis, EnPI-based decision-making, EE intervention design, monitoring and verification, and the institutional embedding of EnM within municipal governance processes. To support scaling and dissemination of results and international and national best municipal EnM best practices, the consultancy will organise a national conference on municipal EnM as a platform for knowledge exchange and dialogue among sector stakeholders. Furthermore, advisory inputs will be provided to contribute to an enabling framework for EnMS, including recommendations for policy and institutional support measures at national and provincial levels. Lastly, the consultancy will implement a hands-on training programme for recently graduated women engineers in the field of EnM and EnMS to strengthen their technical competencies and promote their participation in Pakistan"s energy sector by enhancing their employability. The working packages listed are indicative and may be adapted in response to partner needs and evolving framework conditions. The contractor is expected to provide flexible, demand-driven advisory services within the defined scope of expertise and to ensure regular reporting and structured coordination with the project throughout contract implementation. In order to provide the service, the contractor should put together a sufficiently large, qualified, and experienced team of experts based on the required expertise, with a focus on ensuring adequate on-ground time to provide the necessary hand-holding and continued support for the implementation of project activities with the selected municipal partners. The team should also be able to engage with the selected political counterparts to be covered. The proposal for the tender should outline the strategy for task fulfilment, specifying personnel roles and the overarching internal management concept to be used as the basis for processing orders, including financial backstopping. Part of the fulfilment of the contract includes regular reporting to the project on progress made in achieving the objectives. The regular exchange between the project and the consultants begins at the start of the contract and includes weekly or bi-weekly reflection sessions, which can be adjusted to a different frequency if needed.