A retrofit project of the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK is the first in Europe to sign up to a new energy efficiency accreditation scheme, imported from the United States. This Investor Ready Energy Efficiency (IREE) certification gives investors and financial institutions guarantees that a project is environmentally and financially sound. It could pave the way for a huge expansion of energy efficiency projects across Europe: “the IREE … [Read more...]
Energy efficiency in the UK: why are we walking away from it?
For the first time in more than two decades, the UK has no energy efficiency programme for the bulk of the market, write Jan Rosenow and Richard Cowart of the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP). The authors note that the pace of reduction in energy demand is already slowing down and this will only get worse in the coming years. They call on the UK government tot take action: the market won’t deliver energy efficiency without incentives or … [Read more...]
Torpedoing the 2030 energy efficiency target
The European Commission, in preparing a new proposal on an EU energy efficiency target, has adopted somewhat more realistic assumptions than it did last time around, writes Brook Riley of Friends of the Earth Europe. But according to Riley, voices inside the Commission still seem to want to torpedo more ambitious efforts: they are aiming for a simple least-cost scenario, without regard for the many benefits of energy efficiency. “That’s daft!” … [Read more...]
Why the UK Green Deal failed and why it needs a replacement
The National Audit Office in the UK has concluded that the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s (DECC) £240 million Green Deal has achieved virtually nothing. David Thorpe, independent consultant and author of several books on energy efficiency in buildings, explains what went wrong. He compares the British approach with the successful German scheme and argues that a new scheme is urgently needed. … [Read more...]
EU insists energy security is about more than gas
“When it comes to energy security in the long term, there is no better antidote than focusing on sustainable energy,” said EU Climate and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete at the launch of a new EU energy security master plan in Brussels on 16 February. The Commission defended its proposals – which focus on safeguarding gas supplies – as an aid to moving Europe along to a low-carbon economy as well as preparing it for possible supply … [Read more...]
Behavioural change could deliver half of industry energy saving potential
Expert studies show that there is still vast untapped energy efficiency potential of up to 25% in European heavy industry. Moreover around half of that, or 10-15%, could be delivered through behavioural change at zero capital cost. So far, the EU has mandated energy audits for large companies, but not application of their results. Energy Post looks at how a new heating and cooling strategy due on 16 February and a review of the EU’s energy … [Read more...]
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