EPC is a delivery model.
In an EPC arrangement, an engineering, procurement and construction partner delivers the plant. The customer or project owner funds and owns the asset. The key questions are scope, equipment, design, delivery interfaces, commissioning and the operating plan after handover.
RESCO is a service and power-purchase arrangement.
In a RESCO model, the developer typically owns the plant and the customer buys electricity under a PPA. The customer avoids funding the plant upfront, but enters a long-term commercial relationship. Tariff, consumption, access rights, payment security and termination provisions all matter.
IPP describes the power-producing business.
An independent power producer develops or owns generation assets and sells power. A project can be both an IPP asset from the owner’s perspective and a RESCO supply arrangement from the consumer’s perspective. These terms are therefore not always competing options.
Compare on a common basis.
Ask for the same generation assumptions, consumption profile, responsibilities and time horizon across options. Include operating costs, financing, relevant grid charges and contractual obligations. A site-specific assessment is more useful than a generic payback claim.
A Green Peers explainer for project conversations. Project design and commercial choices should be evaluated for the specific site and applicable requirements.