Comprehensive monitoring system – essential tool to show the results of the energy audit and voluntary agreement programmes

Ulla Suomi, Motiva Oy, Finland
Heikki Väisänen, Ministry of Trade and Industry/ Energy Department/ Renewables and Energy Efficiency Division, Finland

Keywords

monitoring, bottom-up, policy programme, data collection, follow-up data, energy efficiency measures, energy saving, results

Abstract

Without visible results political support to an energy efficiency programme will dissolve in a few years. Therefore high-quality monitoring and reporting systems are essential to maintain a long-term commitment.

Both in Finnish Energy Audit Programme (EAP), began in 1992, and in Voluntary Agreement Scheme (VA), began in 1997, bottom-up monitoring systems have been in place almost since the beginning. These policy measures and their monitoring systems are integrated.

For the EAP monitoring system data is collected in three phases:

subsidies granted ‡ the energy auditing volumes in different sectors
submitted EA reports ‡ proposed measures and saving potentials
VA annual reporting ‡ status of implementation of the proposed measures in EA reports à implementing rate for saving potentials

In VA scheme the companies and communities report annually on their energy consumption and on energy efficiency measures they have implemented or have decided to implement. Information on energy savings in energy units and energy costs as well as the required investment is reported in connection to the presented measures.

The collected data is based on engineering calculations by the energy auditors. Since the companies have no incentives to submit exaggerated savings, the reported savings are equal to those figures the companies have used as criteria when deciding on the implementation of the measures.

By 2005 these two policy measures have generated about 7 TWh annual savings, representing over 2 % of Finland´s total energy end-use. In relation to the magnitude of savings brought in daylight, the investment on monitoring has really paid back.