Tool to improve resource efficiency (for companies)

Check out a tool to improve a company resource efficiency
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EU's Energy efficiency goal not on track

The EU's 20% energy efficiency improving is not on track for 2020.
The Danish presidency has made the Energy Efficiency Directive a priority until June. This ambitious goal is a means to create green jobs in building renovations as well as a way of cutting consumer spending and dependence on expensive energy imports.
But some utilities and EU countries are resisting it, leading to a weak proposal to close the gap.

More information: EU Energy Savings Plan Too Weak: Green Campaigners

Energy efficiency is a business opportunity

According to the director at Delta Energy and Environment, a consulting firm, energy efficiency is a business opportunity as soon as the EU's Energy Efficiency Directive is approved.

A utility interested in improving energy efficiency [they] tried telling customers "you could save money". The customers were not interested. They tried telling customers "you could save the environment". The customers were not interested. They told their customers "you are doing the right thing for the country, you are increasing energy efficiency". The customers were not interested. But when they told their customers "here is how you are using energy compared to how other customers use energy, they were suddenly interested.”

More information: Energy efficiency is a business opportunity

Carbon Trust launches ‘Empower’ tool to help employees save energy

Carbon Trust has just released a new tool to help employees save energy: Empower
Watch the video and start saving energy!

IEA - Solar energy could be competitive within 20 years

A new publication by the IEA refers that solar energy could be competitive within 20 years.
Again this depends on the right policies specially in sunny places where economic growth occurring.

Integrating all solar technologies in a system-oriented policy approach will unlock the potential of solar energy within the broader set of low-carbon technologies

Paolo Frankl, head of IEA’s renewable energy division

Energy: Roadmap 2050

The European Commission adopted on the 15th December the Roadmap 2050 for Energy.

Based on the analysis of a set of scenarios, the document describes the consequences of a carbon free energy system and the policy framework needed. This should allow member states to make the required energy choices and create a stable business climate for private investment, especially until 2030.
The Energy Roadmap 2050 identifies a number of elements which have positive impacts in all circumstances, and thus define some key outcomes such as:
- Decarbonisation of the energy system is technically and economically feasible. All decarbonisation scenarios allow achieving the emission reduction target and can be less costly than current policies in the long-run.
- Energy Efficiency and renewable energy are critical. Irrespective of the particular energy mix chosen, higher energy efficiency and important rising shares of renewables are necessary to meet the CO2 targets in 2050. The scenarios also show that electricity will play a greater role than now. Gas, oil, coal and nuclear also figure in all scenarios in different proportions, allowing Member States to keep flexible options in their energy mix provided a well connected internal market is achieved quickly.
- Early Investments cost less. Investment decisions for the necessary infrastructure up to 2030 must be taken now, as infrastructure built 30-40 years ago needs to be replaced. Acting immediately can avoid more costly changes in twenty years. The EU's energy evolution requires anyway modernisation and much more flexible infrastructure such as cross border interconnections, "intelligent" electricity grids and modern low-carbon technologies to produce, transmit and store energy.
- Contain the increase of prices. The investments made now will pave the way for the best prices in the future. Electricity prices are bound to raise until 2030, but can fall thereafter thanks to lower cost of supply, saving policies and improved technologies. The costs will be outweighed by the high level of sustainable investment brought into the European economy, the related local jobs, and the decreased import dependency. All scenarios get to decarbonisation with no major differences in terms of overall costs or security of supply implications.
- Economies of scale are needed. A European approach will result in lower costs and secure supply compared to national parallel schemes. This includes a common energy market which should be completed by 2014.

More information:
Press release
Roadmap 2050

Homes responsible for one quarter of European greenhouse emissions from energy

A new report from the EEA states that european homes are responsible for 25 % of greenhouse emissions from energy:

Home energy use is responsible overall for 25 % of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union (EU), according to a new analysis from the European Environment Agency (EEA). The report calculates emissions based on their 'end use', or the sector using the energy. Homes in the EU only emit 12 % of energy emissions directly, but this doubles when related emissions from power plants and district heating are factored in.

Renewable Jet Fuels

Renewable Jet Fuels is a platform intended for aviation companies that helps them choose the best biofuel for their planes.

World is risking an inefficient, insecure, high-carbon future, warns IEA

A warning from the IEA after the release of the World Energy Outlook.
According to Maria van der Hoeven, IEA Executive Director

Governments around the globe need to introduce stronger measures to drive energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies.

She added that

Growth, prosperity and rising population will inevitably push up energy needs over the coming decades. But we cannot continue to rely on insecure and environmentally unsustainable uses of energy.

The model used in the World Energy Outlook assumes an increase in primary energy demand (three times what it is now in 2035). This is mainly due to non-OECD economies. It is assumed that the proportion of fossil fuels will fall from 81 to 75% and renewables will increase from 13 to 18%. Subsidies to renewables will also increase from $64 billion to $250 billion in 2035, which remains lower than subsidies for fossil fuels (about $300 bilion).

More information: Energy Efficiency News

Dial4Light

Cost pressures are forcing many towns and cities into saving on public street and walkway lighting. Lighting times are being shortened as an ever-increasing result. To overcome the security issue this may cause, it is now possible in some cities to use the cell-phone to control the light.
Check it out:
Dial4Light

Come on labels

Come on labels is a project funded by the European Commission with information about energy labeling of household appliances.
You can find the following information:

- Overview of the European and selected national legislation related to appliance labelling,
- Description of the system of product testing for ensuring the device features’ compliance with the information on the label,
- Information about known appliance tests undertaken during the duration of the project,
- Overview of how the proper presence of energy labels should be controlled in shops,
- Description of the status of label presence in retailer shops according to visits made by project partners,
- Examples of promotional activities designed to encourage the general public to take into account the information on the energy label in making their purchasing decisions.

Roadmap to a resource efficient Europe

Yesterday the European Commission presented the Roadmap to a resource efficient Europe.

Some highlights:

Today in the EU, each person consumes 16 tonnes of materials annually, of which 6 tonnes are wasted, with half going to landfill.

The Vision: By 2050 the EU's economy has grown in a way that respects resource constraints and planetary boundaries, thus contributing to global economic transformation. Our economy is competitive, inclusive and provides a high standard of living with much lower environmental impacts. All resources are sustainably managed, from raw materials to energy, water, air, land and soil. Climate change milestones have been reached, while biodiversity and the ecosystem services it underpins have been protected, valued and substantially restored.

Computer energy efficiency doubles every 18 months

An interesting article in Ecogeek states that computer energy efficiency doubles every 18 months. This comes as a indirect consequence of the Moore's law (power doubling every 18 months) because what contributes to the power improvement (reducing component size, capacitance and communication time between them) also increases energy efficiency.

More information A new and improved Moore's law

Energy efficiency directive

The Commission is proposing a new energy efficiency directive to cut energy consumption by 20% in 2020. With all the measures on EU and national level in place so far the EU only reached 9% of savings.
The measures proposed include:
- Legal obligation to establish energy saving schemes in all Member States: energy distributors or retail energy sales companies will be obliged to save every year 1,5 % of their energy sales, by volume, through the implementation of energy efficiency measures such as improving the efficiency of the heating system, installing double glazed windows or insulating roofs, among final energy customers;
- Public sector to lead by example: public bodies will push for the market uptake of energy efficient products and services through a legal obligation to purchase energy efficient buildings, products and services. They will further have to progressively reduce the energy consumed on their own premises by carrying out every year the required renovation works covering at least 3% of their total floor area;
-Major energy savings for consumers: easy and free-of-charge access to data on real-time and historical energy consumption through more accurate individual metering will now empower consumers to better manage their energy consumption. Billing should be based on the actual consumption well reflecting data from the metering;
- Industry: Incentives for SMEs to undergo energy audits and disseminate best practices while the large companies will have to make an audit of their energy consumption to help them identify the potential for reduced energy consumption;
- Efficiency in energy generation: monitoring of efficiency levels of new energy generation capacities, establishment of national heat and cooling plans as a basis for a sound planning of efficient heating and cooling infrastructures, including recovery of waste heat.

For public buildings, from 2014 onwards, 3% of public buildings should be renovated each year with energy consumption reductions in mind. This percentage is renovated per year, but in only half of the cases efficiency improvements are included. In practice, this could mean that walls are insulated, double glazing windows are installed in kindergardens, schools or townhouses, roofs are redone and inefficient heating boilers replaced.

How can you force government to spend money in times they have to save money?

The renovation of public buildings would to a significant extent pay for itself through the savings on the energy bills and would also help the economic recovery by stimulating business activity and jobs.

However, still there is a need for upfront investment in the implementation of energy efficiency improvements. For this reason, the proposed Directive includes provisions to strengthen the energy services markets. In these markets energy service companies (ESCOs) would pay for the initial investments and get their money back from the savings on the energy bills. In addition to energy savings, this will create business opportunities and new jobs, for example, for construction companies, equipment providers. The energy service market currently accounts for about € 6 billion. The EU potential for such market is estimated at € 25 billion.

In addition to the private funding, Member States can also use their allocations under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to finance the renovation of public buildings. In the period 2007 – 2013, 4.4 billion Euro where available for that purpose.

New measures for increased energy efficiency to reach 20% goal in the EU

Having in mind that the cheapest energy is the one we do not consume, the European Commission proposed a new set of measures for increased Energy Efficiency.
The proposal for this new directive brings forward measures to step up Member States efforts to use energy more efficiently at all stages of the energy chain – from the transformation of energy and its distribution to its final consumption.

More information: Energy Efficiency Directive

EC approves energy efficiency plan, references set-aside

The European Commission finally approval the energy efficiency plan on Wednesday after reaching a resolution of debates about the impact of extended energy efficiency targets on the carbon market. The plan, which pursues a non-binding, EU-wide reduction in energy use of 20 per cent by 2020, now incorporates an explanatory Memorandum which provides for the possible set-aside of carbon allowances in the event that the market is affected. The plan now requires approval from the parliament and council and it remains to be seen whether these provisions will be incorporated into the main text of the Directive or left without legal effect.

Source: Energy Efficiency and Climate Change News: 24 June 2011, IEA

Germany will fase out nuclear power in 2022

The German government decided that the country will phase out nuclear power by 2022. Seven out of 17 stations will remain closed, while the rest will gradually be shut down within the next ten years and be replaced by alternative energies, whose development the country now must push ahead with.
This decision will be costly (estimated two billion euros every year) with the consumer paying the bill.
There are also some issues with the security in energy supply and changes in the German energy network.

In nuclear energy, the global leader is France. Germany lags behind. Angela Merkel has concluded that it is better to engage in another sphere and to explore other markets, including renewable energies. There, the future belongs to Germany. One will tuck away the fact that in the meantime Germany will consume more coal and will generate even more CO2, which reached record levels last year. One will neglect to mention that the country will import more Russian gas and – nuclear power from France. But who will report that this decision, radical and energetic, will break up the foundation on which the European Union originally was built, the Europe that pooled the energies of that era, coal and steel?

Yves Harté, columnist from a french newspaper
More information: Where does nuclear exit lead to?

Greenhouse gas emissions decreased very sharply in 2009

In the European Union!

According to the EEA, greenhouse gas emissions decreased by 7.1% in the EU-27 and 6.9% in the EU-15. This is mainly due to the economic recession of 2009. There is a minor contribution of renewable energy policies.

Although much of the decrease in greenhouse gases is due to the recession, we are starting to see the results of many EU and Member States’ proactive policies in renewable energy. We hope that policy makers continue to build on this success to cut emissions further.

Prof. Jacqueline McGlade, Executive Director of the EEA
Portugal had a decrease of 4.3% in 2009, compared with 2008. Greenhouse gas emissions increased from 1990 to 2009 about 25.5%.
We choose end this commitment period (2008-2012) with 60.1 million tons of CO2. In 2009, emissions were of 74.6 million tons.

Verified 2010 emissions from the EU-ETS point to a 3% emissions increase over the course of the year, which is still far below pre-recession levels. The EU ETS covers more than 12,000 power plants and manufacturing installations, or approximately half of all emissions. This rebound in emissions partly reflects the economic recovery.

Prospect of limiting the global increase in temperature to 2ºC is getting bleaker

According to the IEA energy-related carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2010 were the highest in history, making it unlikely to meet temperature rise to no more than 2º.

IEA estimates that 40% of global emissions came from OECD countries in 2010, these countries only accounted for 25% of emissions growth compared to 2009. Non-OECD countries – led by China and India – saw much stronger increases in emissions as their economic growth accelerated.

Commission asks Portugal to change its end-user price regulation scheme to ensure freedom of choice and protection for consumers

From the Energy DG newsletter:

On 19 May the European Commission formally requested Portugal to bring its national legislation on regulated end-user gas prices in line with EU rules. EU law on the internal energy market foresees that prices are set primarily by supply and demand. End-user prices set by state intervention put obstacles to new market entrants and therefore deprive consumers and companies of their right to choose the best service on the market. The Commission has decided to send a reasoned opinion to Portugal. If Portugal does not comply with its legal obligations within two months, the Commission may refer it to the Court of Justice.

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