We present the videos of the third of our three, 4-session workshops on the opportunities for European energy solutions providers to take part in China’s energy transition, held on April 13th and 14th 2021. In this workshop the theme was efficiency, with special reference to finance, buildings, heating and cooling, and smart solutions. Both regions need to go beyond the efficiency “easy wins” so we take a close look at what Europe can offer as ambitions are raised. The expert panellists include government ministers, association presidents, business leaders, analysts and academics. The workshops are joint projects by Energy Post and the EU-China Energy Cooperation Platform (ECECP), funded by the EU. You can also go to the videos from the earlier workshops: the first was themed on Innovation, the second on The Role of Gas.
We also have links to the ECECP website which has English subtitled videos as well as very useful written PDF summaries for each event which you can download and distribute for your research.
Session 1: “The big opportunities for 2030 and beyond”
Highlights
Policymakers have four legs to address climate change: lifestyle and behaviour change, renewable energy, carbon sequestration and energy efficiency.
Energy efficiency of the global energy system has doubled in the past 30 years, but there is still massive potential. Under most scenarios energy efficiency is the largest, most cost-effective way to decarbonise the world, and should be aiming to contribute to at least a 50% reduction in emissions. To deliver this there needs to be a huge effort to build human capacity and put in place a policy framework to mobilise finance.
International collaboration on energy efficiency is needed, the same way countries collaborate on developing hydrogen, nuclear power, or carbon capture and storage technologies. This will not only help all countries achieve faster and cheaper energy efficient solutions, but shared climate goals could help ease political tensions, for example between the US and China.
International standards of energy performance across all sectors and industries need to be made more visible so people have the information they need to make more energy efficient choices. Capital is available, but there are not enough investment-ready projects for them to fund, at least not of the size and depth required to have a major impact.
Wide-reaching regulations need to be put in place, and financial incentives alone won’t be enough. Many of the measures will be politically unpopular, so there needs to be major public engagement to understand the changes they need to make to address the crisis.
However, there will be major additional benefits to doing so; job creation, cost-savings, productivity increase and health benefits. In Asia more than 30% of adult deaths are attributable to fossil fuel air pollution. In Europe it’s 16%.
* Starts with exclusive presentation/analysis by RAP *
Timings for panellists’ opening remarks and presentations:
- 01,43: Samuel Thomas – Senior Advisor, Regulatory Assistance Project (UK)
- 17,29: Benoit Lebot – Senior Policy Advisor, French Ministry of the Ecological Transition (FRANCE)
- 23,15: Paul Waide – Director, Waide Strategic Efficiency Europe (IRELAND)
- 30,45: Guido D Giacconi – CEO, In3Act and former Chair, Energy Working Group, EUCCC, Beijing (CHINA)
- 40,32: Magdalena Kouneva – Director General, Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (AUSTRIA)
# Click here for the ECECP website which has English subtitled videos as well as a written PDF summary for this session which you can download and distribute.
Session 2: “Financing Energy Efficient Buildings”
The size of the opportunity for Buildings Efficiency is mind-boggling, especially in the area of renovation. How will it be financed? How do we in Europe execute our plans? Will our solutions suit China?
Highlights
Energy efficiency is the fastest way to decarbonise by 2050 – able to deliver about half the greenhouse gas emissions reductions we need, according to the International Energy Agency. Energy efficiency in buildings can provide about 40% of that.
Action needs to be taken now to reach these targets. The technical solutions to renovating buildings to a near-zero emissions standard exist, funding is available through the EU recovery programme and the multiple health, societal and energy-saving benefits are known. Yet, renovations are not happening, and the industry is beginning to lose credibility.
Under the EU’s Renovation Wave, launched in 2020, 3.5 million buildings need to be renovated each year. Only 1% of buildings are currently renovated annually. Only 20% of these renovations are designed to deliver substantial energy savings.
An industrialised, ‘one-stop-shop’ approach – or an “Amazon of Renovation” – is needed to achieve renovations at the scale required and ensure everyone – the architects, engineers, product suppliers and financiers – are working in sync.
Innovative financing solutions are needed to incentivise the owners of buildings to make the huge upfront costs, which may take 30 years to pay back.
Investments are needed to develop the human capacity. An estimated 350,000 accredited project managers are needed to manage these projects – compared to 10,700 currently in Germany, which manages one of the more advanced EU renovation programmes.
This provides a major opportunity for stimulating the economy post-Covid-19, as every €1 million invested in deep renovation produces 18 local jobs.
But some EU states have still not delivered their long-term renovation strategies. Binding targets are needed to enforce implementation, because they are politically unpopular. Politicians don’t want to force voters to make expensive and disruptive changes to their own homes.
If they don’t act soon European companies will lose their competitive advantage and the chance to market solutions abroad. While practices and technology for renovating homes to near-zero emissions standards are more advanced in the EU than in China, China will quickly catch up as it makes energy efficiency a focus for the next decade.
Timings panellists’ opening remarks:
- 00,42: Julie Kjestrup – Interim Head of Sustainability, Danfoss, (BELGIUM)
- 09,54: Peter Sweatman – CEO, Climate Strategy & Partners (SPAIN)
- 21,08: Rod Janssen – President, Energy Efficiency in Industrial Processes (EEIP) (FRANCE)
# Click here for the ECECP website which has English subtitled videos as well as a written PDF summary for this session which you can download and distribute.
Session 3: “Heating and cooling in an increasingly electrified world”
Transitioning from coal/fossil fuels towards an increasingly electrified world. Buildings and Industrial processes – what are the best techniques for the transition and beyond in Europe and in China? Do Europe’s best thinking and innovative solutions have a role to play on the global stage?
*Starts with exclusive presentation by EUROHEAT & POWER*
Highlights
Europe’s and China’s heating systems will need to decarbonise to meet both goals for net zero emissions by mid-century, and the technology to do that largely exists today.
Combined heat and power, heat pumps and district heating can all be shifted to more renewable energy sources – both power and gas – to reduce emissions and increase efficiency. Different technologies will work better for different cities or regions, depending on the availability of industries and waste plants, data centres (for waste heat), climate and government policy.
The biggest barrier is cost, giving different results for different regions. Lithuania’s renewable heating, for example, relies on biomass for 70 percent of the share. Government policies are being introduced to subsidise other technologies.
Cold temperatures are still seen as a barrier to heat pumps, especially in northern China. The industry, however, argues that the technology will work at -20 degrees Celsius for a few weeks per year, and that it can be built as a hybrid with backup fuel. Most heat pumps now use sea water or air to pump the heat, but heat from data centres are seen as the up-and-coming source of limitless energy.
There is strong scope for China and Europe to work together in expanding zero-emissions heating systems, and for Europe to provide expertise based on years of practice and legislation.
Timings for panellists’ opening remarks:
- 02,41: Alessandro Provaggi – Head of DHC+ Platform, Euroheat & Power (UK)
- 13,10 & 32,00: Lipeng Zhang – International Consultant District Energy, representing VELUX China (CHINA)
- 14,30: Valdas Lukosevicius – President, Lithuanian District Heating Association (LITHUANIA)
- 18.10: Alexandra Tudoroiu – Head of Policy, COGEN Europe (BELGIUM)
- 24,54: Thomas Nowak – Secretary General, European Heat Pump Association (BELGIUM)
# Click here for the ECECP website which has English subtitled videos as well as a written PDF summary for this session which you can download and distribute.
Session 4: “Next Generation System Efficiency”
The final session: bringing all the elements of an efficient net-zero system together requires all the latest techniques across generation, storage and grids. And our built environment (homes, offices, shopping centres etc.) will be woven into a bi-directional grid like never before. What should it look like? How will it drive efficiency? Our speakers offer insights into:
Demand-side management – Dynamic Pricing – AI – IoT – Distributed Generation and Storage – EVs – Peak-shaving – Stakeholder and Consumer Engagement
*Starts with exclusive presentation/vision by WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM*
Highlights
Energy is transforming from a centralised and mono-directional system – where companies supply power from big power generators to consumers – to a decentralised and bi-directional system that will give consumers the option to generate and store their own energy, inject it into the grid and decide when to use it.
This shift is well underway, but it still requires the uptake of smart technology, including artificial intelligence, and policies, regulations and communications that support its rollout. The necessary technologies such as artificial intelligence, smart meters, electric vehicles and behind-the-meter storage like home batteries already exist.
But consumers in particular need to understand the added value of shifting to, for example, plugging the energy stored in their EV into the grid. Privacy concerns, which have helped slow the smart meter rollout across Europe, need to be addressed.
Energy storage will be crucial in supporting the rise of renewable power generation, to help lessen power curtailment and boost energy efficiency. Until now, however, EU policymakers have often failed to give storage the attention and data collection needed to plan for it.
Timings for panellists’ opening remarks and presentations:
- 02,27: Anna Acanfora – Systemic Efficiency, World Economic Forum (FRANCE)
- 12,30: Brittney Elzarei – Policy Manager, EASE (European Association for Storage of Energy) (BRUSSELS)
- 17,17: Ahmet Köse – Chief Information Officer, R8Tech (ESTONIA)
- 22,28: Cristobal Lowery – Analytics Manager, Kearney (UK)
# Click here for the ECECP website which has English subtitled videos as well as a written PDF summary for this session which you can download and distribute.
muhammad basit says
hello, thanks, should we wait more 10, 20, 30, 40 years to curb poison of fossil fuel emissions? Our Health & Climate is at Risk. Wars for oil & oil in the war machines have made oil from blessing to Curse_since 1991 Iraq war, Libya bombing 2011 etc……