CSRD & energy data
CSRD starts with accurate utility data.
1,144 data points. Around 220 in ESRS E1. 98% of companies must report it. For commercial real estate portfolios, collecting metered utility data is the single heaviest lift in CSRD. Rhino automates it, across all utilities, across every building in your portfolio.
CSRD data points at a glance
1,144
Total CSRD data points across all ESRS standards
~220
In ESRS E1, the climate and energy standard
98%
Of companies assess E1 as material
~19%
Of all CSRD data points sit in E1 alone
The regulation
CSRD is live. The data collection challenge is real.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive replaces the NFRD and extends mandatory ESG disclosure to thousands more companies across Europe. Reporting follows the European Sustainability Reporting Standards, 12 standards covering environmental, social, and governance topics. Energy data sits at the centre of the hardest standard to fulfil.
1,144
Total data points across 12 ESRS standards
~220
In ESRS E1 alone: climate and energy
98%
Of companies assess E1 as material
3
Reporting waves: FY2024, FY2025 (or 2027 under Omnibus), FY2026 for SMEs
The framework
12 standards, 82 disclosure requirements, 1,144 data points
CSRD uses the European Sustainability Reporting Standards as its technical backbone. The 12 ESRS standards cover 2 cross-cutting topics and 10 topical areas spanning environmental, social, and governance factors. Not all data points are mandatory for every company: a double materiality assessment determines which standards apply. But ESRS E1 is almost always material.
Reporting waves
Wave 1 is reporting now. Wave 2 is close.
Wave 1 (large companies already subject to NFRD) is reporting FY2024 data in 2025. Wave 2 covers other large companies and reports FY2025 data, or FY2027 data under the Omnibus timeline extension. Wave 3 covers listed SMEs from FY2026. The window to build compliant data infrastructure is now, not at the reporting deadline.
Omnibus update: 2026
Fewer mandatory points overall. E1 energy requirements preserved.
The Omnibus I package proposed cutting mandatory CSRD data points by 61%, from approximately 1,100 to approximately 430. Critically, ESRS E1 climate and energy requirements are explicitly preserved. EFRAG submitted amended ESRS standards to the European Commission in November 2025, with final adoption expected mid-2026. Energy reporting is not going away.
The climate standard
ESRS E1: the standard that demands actual meter readings.
ESRS E1 is the most demanding of the 10 topical standards. It covers climate change across three named sub-topics: mitigation, adaptation, and energy. Of these, the Energy sub-topic is the one that directly requires meter-level data. No estimates. No engineering calculations. Actual readings, per asset, per utility, per reporting period.
E1 Sub-topic 1
Climate change mitigation
Covers GHG emissions: Scope 1 (direct), Scope 2 (purchased electricity and heat), and Scope 3 (value chain). CSRD is the first EU regulation to make Scope 3 reporting mandatory. Scope 2 requires both location-based and market-based methods, both of which depend on actual meter readings from each building. Scope 3 upstream emissions also trace back to utility consumption data.
GHG Scope 1 · Scope 2 · Scope 3E1 Sub-topic 2
Climate change adaptation
Requires disclosure of physical climate risks and the resilience measures in place across your portfolio. For real estate companies, this includes exposure to extreme heat, flooding, and energy supply disruption. Physical risk assessments are based on asset location and operational data, including historical consumption patterns. Continuous energy monitoring informs both the risk picture and the response plan.
Physical risk · Resilience measuresE1 Sub-topic 3 · Direct data requirement
Energy
The energy sub-topic requires total energy consumption by fuel type, energy intensity per square metre or per net revenue, renewable versus fossil fuel breakdown, and energy efficiency measures. All of these require per-asset, timestamped metered data. This is the sub-topic that most companies struggle to fulfil, because it is impossible to satisfy with estimates or invoices alone.
Consumption · Intensity · Renewable share · Fuel mix
Audit evidence
Five things your auditor will check for E1 energy data.
Actual meter records, not estimates
Auditors and assurance providers require readings directly traceable to a physical meter. Engineering estimates and invoiced totals are not accepted as primary evidence for ESRS E1 energy disclosures.
Timestamped, auditable readings traceable to source
Each data point needs a timestamp and a clear data lineage: from meter to platform to report. Spot-check readings taken manually cannot satisfy this requirement at portfolio scale.
Per-asset and per-utility breakdowns, not just portfolio totals
ESRS E1 requires disclosures at the individual building level. A single portfolio total is insufficient. Auditors expect breakdowns by asset, by utility type (electricity, gas, heat, water), and by reporting period.
Energy intensity ratios: per m² and per net revenue
E1 requires normalised energy intensity figures. These ratios are calculated from metered consumption data divided by reported floor area or revenue. Both inputs must be available and auditable.
Renewable versus fossil fuel breakdown of energy consumption
Companies must disclose how much of their energy consumption comes from renewable sources versus fossil fuels. This requires utility type tagging at the meter level, not just a total consumption figure.
The data challenge
Buildings use 40% of Europe's energy. Measuring it is now mandatory.
Buildings account for roughly 40% of total energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions in Europe, making real estate one of the highest-impact sectors under CSRD. For a commercial real estate portfolio, E1 energy data is almost always the single largest data collection challenge. The data is spread across hundreds of meters, across dozens of buildings, across multiple countries and utility types.
The collection gap
Most CRE portfolios do not have the data
The metered consumption data required by ESRS E1 is exactly what most commercial real estate portfolios are missing. Energy bills cover the main supply meter. Submeters across tenants and building zones are often unread, estimated, or simply not connected to any central system. Manual collection at scale is not feasible and not audit-ready.
Explore Data SourcesWhat changes with CSRD
Voluntary ESG frameworks accepted estimates. CSRD does not.
Under GRESB and similar voluntary frameworks, a mix of metered data and estimates was accepted practice. CSRD closes that gap. Assurance providers require data that is traceable to a physical meter, with timestamps. A portfolio running on invoice data and engineering assumptions will not pass audit. The transition to metered data needs to happen before the reporting deadline, not at it.
ESG & ComplianceScope 2 complexity
Location-based and market-based methods: both require meter readings
CSRD requires Scope 2 emissions to be disclosed using both the location-based method (grid emissions factor applied to actual consumption) and the market-based method (contractual instruments applied to actual consumption). Both methods start with actual meter readings. A portfolio without metered electricity data cannot produce either figure. Purchased heat and steam carry the same requirement.
ESG & ComplianceMulti-site complexity
Hundreds of assets, multiple utilities, multiple countries
For a European real estate portfolio, the data collection challenge is compounded by the number of assets, the mix of smart and legacy meters, different utility types across different markets, and varying national infrastructure for data access. A manual or partially automated approach breaks down at scale. Automated, direct meter connectivity is the only scalable path to audit-ready CSRD data.
Explore the Platform
Platform capabilities
Every ESRS E1 energy requirement, covered.
Rhino connects to your existing building infrastructure and collects electricity, gas, heat, and water data automatically, at 15-minute intervals, with full timestamps and direct meter traceability. The platform maps directly to the ESRS E1 disclosures your auditor will look for.
Total energy consumption by fuel type
ESRS E1-5
Automated collection of electricity, gas, heat, and water across all assets. All utilities covered, including submeters. No manual reads, no estimation gaps.
Energy intensity per m² or per revenue
ESRS E1-5
Portfolio-level dashboards normalise consumption by building area. Intensity ratios calculated automatically from metered data, exportable per asset and per reporting period.
Renewable vs. fossil fuel breakdown
ESRS E1-5
Utility type tagging at meter level tracks consumption split by energy source. Renewable share reported per asset and at portfolio level.
Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions
ESRS E1-6
Meter-level consumption data is the audit-ready source for GHG calculations. Both location-based and market-based Scope 2 methods require actual readings: Rhino provides them.
Timestamped, auditable data lineage
ESRS assurance requirement
Direct meter connectivity with no intermediary manual step. Every reading timestamped and traceable from meter to platform to export. No estimation gaps in the chain.
Multi-site portfolio coverage
All E1 sub-topics
Scales across hundreds of assets, all utilities, any mix of hardware and software-only connection. Active in 35 countries. One platform for your entire portfolio.
Two connection paths
Software-only or own hardware, no CAPEX overhaul required
Rhino connects to existing smart meters via P1 port integrations, utility provider APIs, and WM-Bus protocols, no new hardware needed. Where smart meters are not available, Rhino installs its own hardware directly on the existing meter. Both paths produce the same audit-ready data stream. Low CAPEX. Fast deployment.
Explore Data SourcesAutomated data collection
15-minute readings, continuously, across all utilities
Rhino collects electricity, gas, heat, and water data at 15-minute intervals. Readings are timestamped at source and stored with full audit trail. No manual collection steps, no tenant dependency, no gaps from missed manual reads. The platform runs in the background and keeps your data current.
Explore the PlatformExport-ready outputs
CSRD-structured data exports your reporting team can use directly
Rhino exports consumption data structured by asset, by utility type, and by reporting period. Energy intensity ratios are calculated in-platform. Exports map to ESRS E1 disclosure requirements and can feed directly into your ESG platform, whether that is Deepki, Scaler, or another tool. No reformatting, no consultant mediation.
ESG & Compliance
ESG platform integrations
Rhino is the data layer.
Your ESG platform is the reporting layer.
Collecting audit-ready utility data is only half the job. Your ESG platform needs that data to produce CSRD disclosures, GRESB submissions, and EU Taxonomy assessments. Rhino connects directly to leading ESG platforms, so the data flows from meter to report without manual steps.
ESG Reporting Platform
Deepki
Direct integration. Rhino feeds per-asset consumption data into Deepki for CSRD, GRESB, EU Taxonomy, and SBTi reporting. No manual data transfer. Deepki reads from Rhino's API in real time, giving your ESG team a single source of truth.
View the integrationPortfolio Analytics
Scaler
Rhino consumption data integrates with Scaler's real estate portfolio analytics layer. Energy data populates asset-level KPIs, carbon benchmarks, and ESRS E1 disclosure fields automatically, without reformatting or manual export.
Partner page coming soonSmart Building Platform
BlueModule
BlueModule uses Rhino meter data to power its smart building dashboards and sustainability reporting outputs. A single data feed covers both operational insight and compliance reporting, with no duplication of data collection effort.
Partner page coming soon
Common questions
CSRD and utility data, answered.
Under ESRS E1, CSRD requires companies to disclose total energy consumption by fuel type, energy intensity per square metre or per net revenue, renewable versus fossil fuel breakdown, and Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions. All of these require actual metered readings per asset, not estimates or engineering calculations. The Energy sub-topic within E1 explicitly demands meter-level data collection across all buildings in scope. This is a significant step up from the voluntary ESG frameworks many real estate companies currently use, where estimated data was accepted alongside metered data.
ESRS E1 is the climate change standard within the European Sustainability Reporting Standards framework. It is the most data-intensive of the 10 topical ESRS standards, containing around 220 data points. For commercial real estate companies, ESRS E1 requires: total energy consumption across all assets by utility type (electricity, gas, heat), energy intensity ratios normalised by floor area, renewable energy share, Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions using both location-based and market-based methods, and a documented transition plan. The energy sub-topic is the hardest to fulfil because it requires per-asset, timestamped meter readings rather than estimates or invoiced consumption figures.
No, estimates are not sufficient for CSRD audit purposes. Auditors and assurance providers require actual meter records: timestamped, traceable readings from the physical meter for each building and utility type. Estimated or calculated figures are not accepted as primary evidence for ESRS E1 energy disclosures. This is a fundamental change from previous voluntary ESG reporting frameworks, which often allowed a mix of metered data and estimates. Under CSRD, the data quality bar is audit-ready from the outset. Companies that rely on invoice data or engineered estimates will need to upgrade their data collection before their reporting deadline.
The Omnibus I package proposed a 61% reduction in mandatory CSRD data points overall, from approximately 1,100 to approximately 430. However, ESRS E1 climate and energy requirements are explicitly preserved under the proposal. Wave 2 companies (large non-NFRD firms) have had their reporting timeline pushed from FY2025 to FY2027 data, reported in 2028. Wave 1 companies remain on their original schedule. Energy is now also an explicit standalone sub-topic within E1, giving companies the ability to assess materiality at sub-topic level. Regardless of the final Omnibus outcome, energy data collection infrastructure will still be required. Companies that start building it now will be ahead when the deadline arrives.
Rhino connects to your existing building infrastructure, either via smart meter integrations (software-only, no hardware needed) or via its own hardware devices installed on the meter. It then collects electricity, gas, heat, and water consumption data automatically, at 15-minute intervals, with full timestamps and traceability. The platform provides per-asset breakdowns, energy intensity calculations, and export-ready reports that map directly to ESRS E1 disclosure requirements. There is no manual data collection, no estimation gaps, and no tenant dependency. Rhino is active in 35 countries and scales across portfolios of any size.
Ready to make your CSRD data audit-ready?
Rhino connects to your existing building infrastructure and starts collecting data within days. No estimation gaps. No tenant dependency. Audit-ready consumption data from every meter in your portfolio.
Further reading
From the Rhino blog.
