New research¹ by re:sustain, which examines energy efficiency across the property investment portfolios of European institutional property investors, shows that when asked to select the two key factors that will accelerate action to address poor energy performance, ‘less operational disruption’ and ‘greater certainty of a quicker payback’ were ranked as the most important.
Re:sustain, the leading science-based technology platform that optimises the energy consumption of property assets, surveyed 200 European institutional property asset managers in the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy, with combined assets under management (AUM) of €296 billion.
Reducing operational disruption was the most important factor cited by 79 per cent of respondents as the factor they believe will accelerate action to improve the energy performance of their assets. Faster payback certainty was the second most important factor (65 per cent), reflecting the significant upfront investment required to prevent some assets from losing value or becoming ‘stranded’.
Clearer regulatory signals ranked third (55%), highlighting concerns about the complexity of regulations and the need to comply with diverse local, regional and national codes, as well as policy uncertainty resulting from frequent shifts in global climate commitments and unclear enforcement mechanisms.
Better performance verification ranked fourth (40%). Although the majority of respondents (82%) said that the quality of the data collected across their property portfolios is good at helping them identify areas for improvement, only 47% are highly confident when it comes to using it to make capital allocation decisions. Almost half (47%) said they are “quite confident” and 7% said it needs to be used alongside other analysis, rather than on its own.
Crucially, the research also showed that almost two-thirds (62%) of respondents said that only 20–40 per cent of their assets have an up-to-date building management system – a vital tool that significantly helps to improve the energy performance of buildings, reduces costs and minimises downtime resulting from costly equipment breakdowns.
Commenting on the research, Katie Whipp, Chief Business Officer at re:sustain, said: “Energy efficiency has evolved from a sustainability objective to a core driver of asset performance and resilience. In a more volatile energy environment, institutional investors are not lacking in intent – they are constrained by the perceived complexity, disruption and uncertainty of implementation. What our research clearly shows is that the market is prioritising solutions that deliver immediate, measurable outcomes without disrupting operations or requiring significant upfront capital. That is a fundamental shift.
“The ability to optimise energy performance quickly, with high confidence in payback, is now directly linked to net operating income and long-term asset value. The challenge – and opportunity – lies in turning data into action at scale, and doing so in a way that fits within the operational realities of property portfolios.”
re:sustain was founded in 2021 by scientists who recognised that whilst data was being collected on energy consumption in the property sector, it was not leading to improvements in usage. To solve this problem, the re:sustain team developed innovative technology that uses data collected from building management systems (BMS) to create a highly calibrated digital twin of each building – an accurate model that reflects actual asset performance. This dynamic thermal model enables precise simulations and analyses, eliminating guesswork and allowing for targeted interventions.
The proprietary re:sustain engine processes the digital twin data and the BMS data to identify inefficiencies and opportunities for improvement, whilst calculating potential carbon savings. This remote approach enables targeted optimisations and provides detailed technical insights into existing systems, reducing energy consumption, carbon emissions and operational costs in support of sustainability goals—all without requiring capital expenditure from asset owners or causing business disruption for occupiers.
To date, buildings using re:sustain technology have achieved average annual energy savings of 37 per cent through a process that takes just four to six weeks to implement.
1Research conducted by Pure Profile in February 2026 with 200 respondents working for pension funds, insurance asset managers, asset managers and investment banks that invest in European commercial property assets, who are actively involved in managing or running the commercial property portfolio of the organisation they work for.
The research was carried out in the UK (50 respondents), Germany (30 respondents), France (30 respondents), the Netherlands (30 respondents), Spain (30 respondents) and Italy (30 respondents), with a combined AUM of €296 billion.
