eceee press releases

New eceee and RAP report on Energy Efficiency Obligation schemes

annebe — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:45:00 +0200

In particular, the report addresses Article 6 of the proposed Energy Efficiency Directive on energy efficiency obligation schemes and the accompanying Annex V (both of which are reproduced as Appendix 1 to this report). The RAP eceee report identified several shortcomings with the original approach proposed by the Commission for determining energy savings from individual measures in Annex V, including: Not all the measures are covered; Differences across the region in climate, building types and construction practices, and other baseline conditions will result in many of the measures installed as a result of the EEO saving different amounts of energy in different locations; and Insufficient clarity on the common principles that should be applied when determining energy savings. The report is based on a review of the processes that currently exist in a number of Member States, as well as territories outside the EU for determining energy savings from energy efficiency measures using EEOs. From this review, best practices are identified that should be used to derive high level guidelines and procedures on how energy saving should be determined. Guidance on the monitoring and verification procedures that would need to be in place to ensure that the energy companies meet their obligations is also provided. The report also presents the approach to determining energy saving values for the main classes of energy efficiency measures in buildings (such as upgrades to heating equipment, insulation, lighting, appliances), including individual measures within each class. The importance of sampling, and appropriate sample sizes, is also discussed. Further, the report key issues to consider when designing an EEO. A number of sections describe the principles or general approach to specifying energy savings in three countries: Denmark, France, and the United Kingdom. Other sections examine issues that should be considered in defining energy savings, the high level principles to apply in determining energy saving values, and the energy saving methodology by measure type. The report briefly discusses monitoring, verification, and auditing arrangements. Download report ( pdf ) For related information see eceee's Energy Efficiency Directive page

New eceee report: Energy efficiency obligations - the EU experience

annebe — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:30:00 +0100

The new report entitled "Energy efficiency obligations – the EU experience" is a briefing produced by eceee for the European Commission's Directorate-General Energy. The briefing complements the EEO seminar arranged last September. (A summary was recently published which is available with all presentations). This briefing was prepared by eceee as a background paper for the European Commission's Bucharest Forum working group on Energy Companies role in the Energy Efficiency Services Market. It includes a history of and a snapshot of EEOs and their impacts within the EU as of September 2011. EEOs are in effect a direct intervention into the energy market. In this sense, the Member State (MS) governments are intervening into the energy market in similar fashion as other environmental interventions, e.g. the EU Emissions Trading Scheme or Green Certificates for renewable energy. There is clear evidence that well designed EEOs, both in the EU and globally, can overcome many of the barriers to energy efficiency which prevent the uptake of such measures, particularly by households and small organisations. Barriers can be overcome through the inclusion of personalised advice, technical knowledge, finance on favourable terms or through subsidies, lowering transaction costs, providing quality assurance and confidence through a well-known brand. At the heart of any EEO is an obligation on some part of the energy company to prove that the activities they have promoted or funded have resulted in energy savings in eligible end use customers’ premises or homes coupled with the threat that if they fail to deliver those energy savings, the company will incur financial penalties. The threat of financial penalties has meant that in over fifty years of operational experience in 5 EU countries, no energy company has missed their total energy saving target. The detailed operations of existing and planned EEOs in the Member States are different and reflect the local status of the energy market (liberalised or otherwise), the energy efficiency history of the energy companies, climate, energy saving opportunities, culture, etc. Despite these variations, all have been judged successful by their governments and they have expanded their EEOs accordingly. There is now around €2 billion per year being spent by energy companies in the EU to deliver energy efficiency under EEOs. This figure still only represents between 1 and 5% of the energy bill to customers depending on the MS. The success of this policy tool prompted two more EU Member States – Poland and Ireland – to develop similar schemes. One recent development is that in the UK some energy suppliers have been establishing heating companies, insulation subsidiaries and renewable micro generation companies (e.g. British Gas, E. ON). In principle, this can be viewed as these companies finally taking on board that the message that they should be seen in the future as energy service companies rather than commodity energy suppliers. Similar developments are starting in Italy. However, it is early days and more experience is required to decide whether this is indeed the case. The end use sectors targeted by EEOs for energy saving activities vary within Europe, but all include the residential sector and most activity has been undertaken in the residential sector. This is because the use of deemed (or ex ante) energy savings simplifies the monitoring and verification process and allows mass marketing opportunities. Independent evaluations of the EU EEOs has shown that the cost to all parties (i.e. energy companies, customers and third parties) of saving a unit of electricity or gas are lower than the electricity and gas residential prices by between a factor of two to six. Analysis of the National Energy Efficiency Action Plans (NEEPs) presented to the EU Commission by Member States in 2007 shows that for those with quantified plans in the residential and tertiary sector, the EEOs are a very important part of how they expect to meet their 9% energy saving target in 2016. Despite these EEO successes, due to the differences between the operational aspects of EEOs in different countries, it is unlikely that there could be a fully harmonised EU wide EEO scheme in the near term. In conclusion, despite the wide variation in the way that EEOs have been implemented both in historic and liberalised energy markets, they have been successful policy tools: Member States with EEOs see them as a major policy initiative to meet their NEEAPs and climate change commitments and are continuing to expand their scope; there is growing interest from other Member States EEOs result in more energy savings than would be obtained from an equivalent rise in the price of energy alone Because of the reducing costs and the available potential still there are significant cost-effective possibilities in all EU countries and those Member States who started earlier are setting even more ambitious targets EEO schemes can deliver on low-hanging fruits but with a proper design also on long-term energy efficiency improvements By reducing the number of units required for household energy services, EEOs contribute to energy affordability for low income households in the transition to a low carbon world In the largest EEO, there is evidence over the last 5 years that they are contributing to a significant reduction in gas demand and have helped bring down the costs of EE measures over time At a time when Member States are facing difficult financial problems with public expenditure, the EEO approach avoids Member States having to spend public money to stimulate energy efficiency. The costs incurred by energy companies (typically a few % of the energy bill) are ultimately passed back to the end use customer and this is consistent with the polluter pays principle. Read the report and visit eceee's EED pages .

eceee industrial summer study – eceee introduces new Summer Study to be held 2012

admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:15:00 +0100

"Go to Industry Summer Study page and call for papers " Economically sound, energy efficient industries are key to maintaining and developing the industrial production base in old and newly industrialised economies. The energy and climate gains are large as well: the industry sector accounts for about one third of energy consumption in the EU and the share is similar in other industrialised economies. In a time of global financial turmoil and shaky markets, it is crucial to improve the resilience of the industry sector by making it more efficient and productive. This is important not only to maintain or secure a stable position in the market, but also to contribute to sustainable development. Increased focus on energy efficiency can not only control fuel costs, it can also help to increase quality of production and reduce non-energy costs associated with maintenance, production stand still and insurance fees. And this will have positive employment benefits. The eceee Summer Study on energy efficiency in industry is inspired by eceee’s traditional Summer Studies (see the recent conference evaluation ) – as well as the ACEEE’s US-based Summer Study on energy efficiency in industry. The conference covers all types of industry, from production and food processing to heavy process industry. The eceee industrial Summer Study will be held over three and a half days and is expected to attract industry, energy service companies, policymakers, academia, NGOs and other professionals in energy efficiency. They will meet in the stimulating informal setting that is the trademark of eceee’s Summer Studies. Where and when? Papendal Hotel and Conference Centre in the Netherlands, 11 – 14 September 2012. The Centre is located on the site of the Papendal National Sport Centre in Arnhem, a training ground for many Dutch olympic teams. Format of the industrial energy efficiency Summer Study Just like the traditional eceee Summer Study, the industry Summer Study will offer a mix of formal presentations in parallel panel sessions, plenaries, informal sessions, poster presentations and, of course, round the clock networking. Those familiar with our Summer Studies will notice a few innovations: There will be the possibility to pre-book informal sessions, but these will be held in a “power-point free zone”. Special emphasis will be placed on the quality of posters to make them a true complement to the presentations of papers in parallel sessions. Presenting at the Summer Study The call for papers will be announced shortly. Abstracts are due mid-February, so you should start thinking about your paper now. Peer reviewed papers will be presented in 6 panels. Acceptance of posters will be based on abstracts received. The thematic panels are presented below. Become a sponsor eceee welcomes partners and sponsors. A number of options are available. Please contact eceee for more information: eceee@eceee.org Spread the word! The conference needs abstracts and attendance to become a success. Please help spread the word on this conference within your own networks. If you want to receive more information about this conference, or if you know of anyone else who should do so, just send us the contact information: eceee@eceee.org The six thematic panels 1. Programmes to promote industrial energy efficiency National & regional (or state) programmes have the benefit of short lines between policymakers, implementers and industry. What types of programmes have been implemented to encourage industry to improve its energy efficiency levels? What are the results of these programmes, what lessons learned can be shared and what would be the advice to other economies? Are the programmes primarily aimed at energy, environment, or is economic recovery and job creation equally important? In this panel, examples from all over the globe are welcome. This panel includes policy measures such as Long Term Agreements, other voluntary programmes and mandatory programmes. 2. Sustainable production design and supply chain initiatives Energy efficiency experts often have a very narrow focus on energy efficiency in a given enterprise. Often that’s their strength. But the best results can often be achieved if the design of sustainable production is done not in one production unit, but in the whole product chain. Extending the design to materials (including water) with concepts like cradle to cradle (including CEN TC 350) can be far superior to the focused energy approach. We invite studies on both theoretical production design and practical production. Papers dealing with non-energy benefits will be of interest in this panel. 3. Matching policies and drivers: Policies and Directives to drive industrial efficiency The EU Energy Efficiency Plan 2011 is very ambitious. Making it happen will take an immense effort. This panel is looking at the effects of the different Directives and policies that have been in place so far, and that have had an impact on the industrial sector. What can we learn from monitoring & evaluation of Directives like ETS, CHP, Ecodesign and ESD? And what may we expect from the Lead Market Initiative, SET Plan, and the 2050 Roadmap? How do they influence industry and its energy efficiency and CO 2 goals? What lessons can be learned for the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Plan 2011 and does it have the potential to reach the 20% savings target in 2020? What will be the biggest barriers to implementing measures? 4. Undertaking high impact actions: The role of technology and systems optimisation Evidence from implemented national and international programs shows that, while efficient components may bring about gains in the range of 2 – 5 %, systems optimization measures can attain average efficiency gains of 20 – 30 % with a payback period of less than two years. Figures by IEA and others indicate that R&D budgets of the private sector at least equal those of the public sector. Although not all information will be publicly available there are good examples of results of research that can have a broader impact. On both specific techniques and more general topics (like insulation or ICT) we welcome papers on this topic. The discussion on extended product approach within the EU ecodesign context is highly relevant here. Examples of PPP’s also belong in this panel, as do papers on market barriers for technology. The non-energy benefits of increased efficiency are highly relevant, for instance through increased safety, increased reliability and reduced insurance costs. 5. The role of energy management systems, education, outreach and training Being energy efficient is often a question of know-how. Programs that target energy management or energy audits in SMEs, for example, involve training and targeted knowledge transfer to companies. While important in large companies, these issues are particularly important for SMEs. We welcome papers that contain information on good training and outreach projects as well as those discussing national and international energy and environmental management standards. 6. The role of financing to improve industrial efficiency, global perspective Recognition of energy efficiency as a powerful tool to cut operating costs, improve the economy and reduce environmental pollution has never been greater; yet, the implementation of energy efficiency measures is slow to materialise. Once the necessary legal and regulatory environments, including availability of information, are in place, the single greatest reason for this slow progress around the world is the absence of commercially viable financing. This panel thus deal with the role of financiers and financial institutions. In the EU the ESD (and EED) stimulates the creation of the market of service providers (ESCOs). In other parts of the world ESCOs already are a booming business. Other models based on Carbon trading (including JI and CO 2 ), CO 2 tax rebates and White Certificates. All these financial products and protocols that are key to financing industrial efficiency projects will have a place in this panel. For more information contact eceee secretariat eceee@eceee.org

The 2011 Summer Study evaluated: Growth in participation with maintained quality

admin — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 16:15:00 +0100

The 2011 issue of the Summer Study was entitled Energy efficiency first: The foundation of a low-carbon society. The 2011 Summer Study – the 10 th since 1993 – reinforced the position of the conference as Europe’s premier event for information exchange and networking on energy efficiency. The evaluation of the eceee Summer Study was to undertaken through an extensive online survey to which almost 80% of the participants responded. The ratings were consistently high, and in some areas marked a considerably increase in ratings from already high ratings in previous years. “This is the only place where you can find energy efficiency people from all the different worlds (industry, consultancies, universities, etc.) and fields (engineering, social sciences, economy, finance, lobbying, etc.). And the organisation of the conference makes it the best place for real exchanges between everybody. When you come back home after the conference, you get enough new ideas to work on for the two years before the next one!” (Participant’s comment from the evaluation) The 2011 Summer Study has managed to attract many first time visitors. 59 % of the attendees attended the event for the first time, compared to 44 % in 2009. "This is very encouraging, especially since 85% respondents say they intend to come back next time", says Mr Nils Borg, eceee's Executive Director. " We keep reaching out to new groups, but we also maintain a group of loyal participants who come back year after year." A few highlights This 2011 event attracted 400 participants who spent five intense days listening to presentations and debating them, setting up and participating in informal sessions and around the clock networking. The number of submitted abstracts has also grown , reaching 507 submitted abstracts in 2011, with a total of 221 final, peer-reviewed papers included in the conference proceedings. See eceee's proceedings pages: http://proceedings.eceee.org The content of the conference continues to receive consistently high average ratings. The same is true for the pre-conference registration and paper submissions process. The organisation also receives very high average ratings. The move to a new venue was highly appreciated by conference participants, although the location close to Toulon presented logistical challenges to both participants and organisers. See evaluation page

eceee elects new board

admin — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 17:40:00 +0100

eceee welcomes the following new organisational members to its board: EuroACE (represented by Adrian Joyce); The Fraunhofer Institute, Germany (represented by Barbara Schlomann) ; SEVEn, Czech Republic (represented by Juraj Krivošík), and WSP Sweden (represented by Agneta Persson). These four members join the four organisational members which will continue to serve on the board: ADEME, France (represented by Didier Bosseboeuf); Danish Energy Agency (represented by Peter Bach); Enova, Norway (represented by Andreas K. Enge), and Kyoto Club, Italy (represented by Lorenzo Pagliano). The following individual members were elected to the board: Randall Bowie, Rockwool International, Denmark/Brussels Rob Kool, NL Agency, the Netherlands, new as individual (NL Agency has decided to step down as an organisational member of the board) Marianne Osterkorn, Austria, new individual member Hal Wilhite, University of Oslo, Norway Hans Nilsson, FourFact, Sweden, was elected as an alternate for the individual members. The General Assembly expressed its sincere thanks to the outgoing board members for their hard work and very valuable contributions to eceee. Rod Janssen and Eoin Lees have been individual board members and Emilie Carmichael of the UK Energy Saving Trust has been alternate for individual board members. Holger Krawinkel has represented the German Federation of Consumer Organisations (vzbv). NL Agency is also stepping down from the board, but in this case Rob Kool will remain as an individual member. Sergio Andreis has decided to step down from the board as representative for the Kyoto Club, and he is replaced by his former alternate Lorenzo Pagliano. For more information on the General Assembly and the new board, please see: General Assembly page Board member biographies

New EED resource page and steering through the maze guide

admin — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The new eceee steering through the maze guide is the fifth in the series of guides on current energy efficiency hot topics, and is entitled "Your eceee guide to following the approval process of the proposed Energy Efficiency Directive" and so will be updated regularly as the proposal moves through the process.

The guide is complemented by a web page on the draft EED. Apart from summarising the Directive, the web page provides up-to date links to the views and web pages of other relevant stakeholders and serves as a comprehensive resource page for all things related to the draft EED.

The new page complements eceee's other thematic pages on energy efficiency policy (with sub-pages on the 2011 Energy Efficiency Plan), the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, on ecodesign and labelling and on the Energy Services Directive.

A new column by Hans Nilsson also deals with the EED (Where is our Prince Charming?) has also been published in addition to an external column by Friends of the Earth's Brook Riley and CAN Europe's Erica Hope.

eceee hopes that this new page will help everyone interested in, but confused by, EU energy efficiency policy, to better understand the process of adopting the Directive.

eceee 2011 proceedings now online

admin — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Full papers and the presentations from the 2011 Summer Study are available for download for eceee members. The abstracts of all 2011 papers are available for free. Proceedings from all other eceee Summer Studies (1993-2009) are available without any restrictions.

The library now contains several thousand papers. eceee hopes members of the energy efficiency community will find this resource useful.

Go directly to the 2011 proceedings page
Go to the index for eceee Summer Study proceedings
Read more about the eceee Summer Study

Target setting - New eceee snapshot report on target setting and new policy pages

admin — Wed, 25 May 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The new eceee report is based on a survey completed by eceee members and other contacts in most Member States together with an online stakeholder consultation.

The report is designed to help decision-makers and relevant stakeholders appreciate how targets are currently used and how effective they can be. It is hoped that this report will provide evidence to be used in the upcoming policy development discussions. Together with the report, eceee also opened a page on EU energy efficiency policy issues and targets.

On these pages, the main report and an accompanying report (providing country specific information) are available together with background information on policy and targets. eceee's dedicated EEP pages have been moved to the new section as well.

“eceee today doesn’t advocate a particular form of targets,” says Mr Nils Borg, eceee’s Executive Director. “National targets is a contentious issue and part of the controversies depend on how to define targets and what targets to use. The report provides an overview of the existing targets and the current thinking on targets in EU Member States, and we hope all stakeholders will find this useful.”

The findings of the report need to be seen in the current policy context in Europe. A new Energy Savings Directive is to be proposed by the European Commission in June 2011. While it is currently assumed there will be no specific targets (indicative or mandatory) proposed, the possible use of targets cannot be dismissed because it is acknowledged that the EU is not on track to meet its 2020 energy savings (indicative) target. The more effective use of targets could be an option to help address that gap.

The report gives a comprehensive cross-EU overview. There are summaries of the situation in each Member State. Full details of the information gathered from each country are included in a separate, companion report.

“We are excited over the fact that we managed to involve a large number of respondents from all over EU. We are grateful to all who put time into this. Without all these stakeholders getting involved the report would have been less relevant and, frankly, much less interesting,” says Mr Borg.

A number of conclusions regarding existing targets were made. These are based on a synthesis of respondents' views and literature research:

While there is a wide variety of targets in use, it is difficult to compare them even within individual Member States. For example, the Energy End Use and Energy Services Directive from 2006 has raised the profile of energy efficiency and has encouraged greater use of targets across the EU but it is not possible to tell how much additional energy efficiency action it has resulted in.
Targets are definitely seen as only one element of the solution: there needs also to be political, stakeholder and resource commitment.
The types of target in use vary between sectors: white certificate style approaches with legally binding targets are favoured for the energy supply sector; voluntary agreements are used with industrial sectors, and transactional targets are most common in the buildings sector.
Different types of targets are suited to different energy efficiency policy aims, but there remains a need for a clear and understandable headline target, to act as an umbrella for all national action, supplemented by a range of other targets suited to national priorities and context.
Targets need to balance achievability and ambition. If they are too low they are meaningless. But if they are too high it is likely that key stakeholders will not engage in the delivery process.

The report also looks into measurement issues as well as future targets setting. On future targets, respondents concluded that:

There is a concern that the current differential in status between the binding renewables target and the non-binding energy efficiency target is skewing activity inappropriately towards renewables. But the political viewpoint that sees the idea of another binding target as adding further regulatory burden as acknowledged.
Whilst a binding target would address this imbalance, the risk that it would limit flexibility of response is recognised.
If binding targets do become the way forward, they would need to be high level and achievable and may also require the harmonised measurement framework to be simple, high-level, transparent, and with room for innovation and continuous improvement.

Read more:

The main report and the accompanying report with country specific information report are found under the targets page.
eceee’s new pages on general energy efficiency policy.

New maze guide: building retrofit knowledge at your fingertips

admin — Fri, 06 May 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Over the years, both the eceee and the ACEEE Summer Studies have generated a wealth of evidence-based knowledge on most aspects of energy efficiency and savings. Buildings have always featured prominently in the Summer Studies.

The new guide will bring anyone interested in building retrofits access to this wealth of material at their fingertips. It also provides a sneak preview on the relevant papers to be published at the eceee 2011 Summer Study, 6-11 June in Southern France.

"I am positively surprised to see how much knowledge we have amassed over the years on this topic. And the upcoming 2011 Summer Study is no exception", says Nils Borg eceee's Executive Director.

Earlier this week, eceee also published a report entitled "Cost optimal building performance requirements. Calculation methodology for reporting on national energy performance requirements on the basis of cost optimality within the framework of the EPBD”. Within three days, the report was downloaded many hundred times.

"Our activities in the buildings area reflect the importance of buildings in the overall European energy and climate policy. The popularity of the reports show that this view is shared by other stakeholders," says Mr Borg.

"The eceee Summer Study is the perfect venue to continue the discussions and develop the thinking on energy efficient buildings. If you haven't registered yet you should do so now not to miss out on this quality event.

The new "Steering through the maze" guide is available at eceee's buildings pages.

New eceee page on cost optimality with new report.

Visit the Summer Study pages here

Cost optimality methods for buildings will help save energy

admin — Mon, 02 May 2011 00:00:00 +0200

eceee's new report "Cost optimal building performance requirements – Calculation methodology for reporting on national energy performance requirements on the basis of cost optimality within the framework of the EPBD" is intended to bring an important new process of defining good building energy performance standards all over Europe.

“The eceee report is a very timely and welcome contribution to the process”, says Michaela Holl at the European Commission. “We are planning an expert meeting on the 6^th of May and the eceee report will feed important information and ideas to this meeting”.

Since climate and building traditions differ greatly across Europe it is impossible to define simple performance levels in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). Instead, a common methodology must be developed to allow Member States themselves to catch the full energy savings potential while taking local conditions into consideration.

Numerous studies have shown that we don't live in the best of worlds when it comes to building energy performance standards in Europe.

"Most of the building codes in Europe fail to catch the energy savings that could be achieved without wasting money. Instead, today's building standards lead to losses for consumers, a more energy insecure Europe and more harm for the environment" says Nils Borg, eceee’s Executive Director.

The EPBD recast now requests that Member States shall ensure that minimum energy performance requirements for buildings are set “with a view to achieving cost-optimal levels”. The cost optimum level shall be calculated in accordance with a comparative methodology.

"While cost optimality may sound like a simple technical exercise, it is far from it", says Thomas Boermans from Ecofys, the report's main author. “The principle of cost optimality is serious business, requires a suitable methodology and common understanding. If we get it right, European buildings will save vast amounts of energy and costs."

The previous EPBD set out a general framework to assess the energy performance of buildings and required Member States to define maximum values for energy delivered to meet the energy demand associated with the standardised use of the building.

However it did not contain requirements or guidance related to the ambition level of such requirements. As a consequence, building regulations in the various Member States have heretofore been developed by the use of many different approaches (influenced by different building traditions, political processes and individual market conditions) and resulted in different and often very sub-optimal ambition levels.

The objective of this report is to contribute to the ongoing discussion in Europe around the details of such a methodology by describing possible details on how to calculate cost optimal levels and pointing towards important factors and effects.

Today, eceee has also opened a new page on cost optimality where future reports may be hosted.

Download report from eceee's cost optimality pages

eceee joins call for deep renovations throughout Europe

admin — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 15:14:47 +0200

The letter calling for deep renovations was sent to EU Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger and Europe's Energy Ministers and has been published in many of Europe's major newspapers.

The letter is written as part of a newly launched campaign entitled "Renovate Europe". The letter points out that recent environmental disasters as well as turmoil in the energy market have underlined the energy challenges that we in Europe face.

Europe needs affordable, secure and safe energy for our economies to grow and for our citizens to prosper. Europe faces a once in a lifetime challenge and now have the opportunity to address this challenge.

"A deep renovation of Europe’s existing buildings will save 32% of the total primary energy used in Europe. This saving is equivalent to the combined total energy production of the European coal and nuclear energy sectors or a saving of 4 billion barrels of foreign oil per year", says Nils Borg, Executive Director of eceee.

"Energy savings should be given equal weight to energy production in Europe’s 2050 Energy Road Map", concludes Mr Borg. "We are thrilled to sign this letter together with all important trades and companies that actually will have to carry out the work to renovate Europe."

Go to the Renovate Europe web site

eceee launches web page on the 2011 Energy Efficiency Plan

admin — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0100

eceee hopes that this new page will help everyone interested in, but confused by, EU energy efficiency policy, to better understand the process.

The new page complements eceee's other thematic pages on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, on eco-design and labelling and on the Energy Services Directive.

Visit the page here

eceee on the Energy Efficiency Plan 2011: “New concrete measures needed to meet the 2020 savings target”

admin — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 23:00:00 +0100

eceee stresses that energy efficiency is the first and most important step to reduce emissions and achieve many other important goals, not least of which is improving Europe’s energy security. Energy efficiency is the most cost effective solution. eceee wants the assurance that the priority for energy efficiency in energy policy remains at the highest level.

The new Plan shows that the European Union is not on track to meet the 20 per cent target for energy savings by 2020, and it presents an array of proposals to ensure that target is achieved. However, the proposals are not described in detail and there is no timetable for implementation.

The plan also fails to address issues such as improving implementation of existing Directives and there is little insight as to how implementation will improve through new EU initiatives. Furthermore, the Plan does not account for the administrative capacity concerns that many Member States face.

eceee is therefore concerned that the measures outlined in this Plan will fail to close that gap.

Europe is at a point where we need ambitious and quick results. Ambitious proposals from the Commission are urgent and the Council and Parliament must agree on this as soon as possible. Eventually, the proposed initiatives must be implemented on Member State level before we will see the necessary savings.

For example, the ecodesign process needs to be accelerated and the Plan gives no indication this will happen. Taking boilers as an example, the approval process for this product has been going at too slow a speed for too long. The projected ecodesign-related carbon reductions for boilers were projected at almost 5% savings on EU’s total energy-related carbon emissions, but that was assuming the boiler standards would already be in place.

eceee welcomes the Plan’s proposals for energy supplier obligations and targets for renovation of 3 per cent of public buildings every year. eceee is more cautious, however, on the Plan’s ideas for improving the energy efficiency of the generation of electricity and heat. eceee is fully supportive of the greater use of cogeneration. While this is of fundamental importance, the great challenge is still on the end-use demand side and that is where the most important actions will have to be directed. Policy attention cannot be deflected away from addressing energy demand effectively.

Coming to the question of binding targets, eceee is fully aware of the controversy and the current impasse between the Council and European Parliament. But, according to the Commission, binding targets have to be considered in 2013 if the progress review shows that EU is still not on track to meet the 20 percent savings target. In the light of this, eceee believes that a common methodology for understandable and measurable targets, must be developed over the next two years.

The strength and legacy of this plan will be shown in the draft legislation that comes forth soon. eceee hopes that it will provide the guidance and leadership needed to effectively and efficiently meet the 2020 targets for energy efficiency.

eceee can only offer one piece of advice: Energy Efficiency First. Europe will not regret it.

Links:

European Energy Efficiency Plan 2011.

eceee dedicated page to EEP 2011

eceee publishes new report on directional lighting

admin — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0100

The European Commission is currently evaluating ecodesign requirements, i.e., minimum efficiency performance standards (MEPS), and energy labelling proposals for directional lamps as the second part of the so-called domestic lighting ecodesign requirements (Lot 19). The original preparatory study on directional lighting requirements quantifies the electricity savings potential at 23.6 - 35.6 TWh electricity per year (by 2020) in the EU alone. The preparatory study, already more than two years old, recommends using infrared-coated (IRC) halogens as the benchmark technology for minimum energy performance requirements.

The new eceee-commissioned study analyses the potential of halogen incandescent technologies to contribute to energy savings through ecodesign requirements. The performance requirements and the strategies chosen to phase out inefficient technologies from the EU market are closely followed by policy makers in other regions, and the outcomes of the EU process will have an impact on the work done elsewhere in the world.

This technology has the potential to increase the minimum efficacy of directional lamps by up to four times (defined as functional lumens per watt), while still providing an affordable technology that will provide the same quality of light as existing inefficient technologies. Halogens could thus serve as a bridging technology until other more efficient technologies can take over, the report argues.

A common argument against such strict requirements is that exclusive patents would close some manufacturers out from the market. However, extensive patent research has revealed that no singular patent would act as a barrier to any manufacturer intending to produce IRC lamps.

The authors offer alternative MEPS and suggest improved EU energy labelling levels (and to some degree different labelling alghorithms) for directional lamps, based generally upon the original proposals in the preparatory study in 2008. However, advances in lamp technology in the past two years make it possible to clearly define a wider range of achievable performance, and to set more stringent requirements that could save significant lighting energy for Europe.

This research was commissioned and published by eceee with funding from the European Climate Foundation, the UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Swedish Energy Agency, and is part of a series of reports on directional lighting requirements available at the directional lighting pages on eceee's ecodesign portal.

Download report (pdf)

For more information please see the eceee pages on directional lighting

eceee publishes updated EPBD recast policy brief

admin — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0200

Buildings consume more than 40 % of Europe’s energy use. Significant potential cost-effective energy savings and CO2 emissions reductions exist in new and existing buildings. The Directive on Energy Performance in Buildings (EPBD) is the main legislative instrument affecting energy use and efficiency in the EU building sector. Originally adopted in 2002, the recast of the Directive was approved 19 May 2010. The Directive tackles both new construction and existing building stock in all sectors. The recast significantly increases energy use ambition levels in EU buildings.

The new policy brief outlines the contents of the original and the recast Directive. It provides short summaries of key points related to the the recast Directive, with fact boxes on issues such as cost optimality, energy performance certificates and net zero energy buildings.

"The new policy brief is a welcome addition to our portfolio of brochures and briefings on the buildings Directive" said Nils Borg, Executive Director of eceee.

Please visit our our buildiings pages for policy brief and more informaiton.