Drivers for energy efficiency and their effect on barriers: empirical evidence from Italian manufacturing enterprises

Industrial activities are responsible for a significant share of both global delivered energy demand and CO₂ emissions. Hence, a widespread adoption of energy-efficient technologies and practices represents a crucial means for sustainable production. Adopting a novel framework of drivers for energy efficiency describing the effect of drivers on barriers in the decision-making process steps and able to account for the nature of drivers and the stakeholders responsible for their promotion, we have performed an exploratory investigation into 61 manufacturing small- and medium-sized enterprises in Northern Italy. Our findings have highlighted the importance of information and economic drivers, showing the need for enterprises to be supported not only by public institutions but also by external stakeholders involved in the supply of energy-efficient technologies and practices such as industrial associations and groupings, as well as service and technology suppliers. Moreover, our study has highlighted an almost equal relevance of both internal and external drivers. According to our findings, the increase of awareness—generating the interest to energy issues and stimulated both by external and internal stakeholders—as well as financial issues have emerged as the most critical in the decision-making process to adopt an energy-efficient measure. A preliminary comprehension of the mechanisms relating drivers to barriers in the decision-making process brought additional value to the study, highlighting the most effective and specific means to overcome the existing barriers. We have also explored the effect of several firm characteristics, such as firm size and energy intensity offering suggestions for industrial decision-makers as well as policy-makers.     

Return on investment from industrial energy efficiency: evidence from developing countries

Energy efficiency is a foundation of any good energy policy. The economic, security, and environmental benefits of energy efficiency have been recognized for decades. We explore energy efficiency investments derived from survey work in developing countries in 119 projects across nine manufacturing subsectors. The methodology utilizes financial return calculations to highlight gaps and opportunities for meeting the potential of energy efficiency projects in the manufacturing sector. We find a generally very high level of internal rates of return at a project level—with payback periods ranging from 0.9 to 2.9 years; but note that these metrics do not always appropriately influence corporate decision-making for a number of well-understood reasons.     

Setting SMART targets for industrial energy use and industrial energy efficiency

Industrial energy policies often require the setting of quantitative targets to reduce energy use and/or greenhouse gas emissions. In this paper a taxonomy has been developed for categorizing SMART industrial energy use or greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. The taxonomy includes volume reduction targets, physical efficiency improvement targets, economic intensity improvement targets and economic targets. This paper also provides a comprehensive overview of targets for industrial energy use or greenhouse gas emission reductions at sector or firm level in past, current and proposed future policies worldwide. This overview includes approximately 50 different emission permit systems, voluntary or negotiated agreement schemes and emission trading systems. Finally, the paper includes an assessment of the various types of targets. The target types are compared with respect to the certainty of the environmental outcome and compliance costs, the targets’ relevance for the public and for industry and their environmental integrity, as well as their complexity and potential for comparison.     

Energy efficiency policy impact in India: case study of investment in industrial energy efficiency

The objective of this paper is to identify the effectiveness of energy policy and capital investment in energy efficiency technologies in the industrial sector in India. Indian energy policies relating to industrial energy efficiency over the past 25 years are briefly reviewed, and a comparison study of these energy efficiency policies and strategies in India and China has been carried out. Interviews were conducted with a number of government policy-making institutions and a national industrial development bank. The accounts of 26 industrial enterprises which applied and used a loan of the Asian Development Bank were audited for data collection. Field-visits to seven industrial entrepreneurs were undertaken in a case study. Methodologies used in this study include documentation, cross-country reviews on energy policies, questionnaire design and distribution in the industrial sector, and on-site auditing of energy efficiency technologies. This paper concludes that current energy policies and strategies in India need further improvement to promote energy efficiency investment and energy efficiency technology development in the industrial sector. This paper will interest those policy makers and industrial entrepreneurs who are willing to finance energy efficiency projects and improve energy efficiency in the industrial sector.     

Implementation of energy efficiency measures in compressed air systems: barriers,drivers and non-energy benefits

Increased global competition and resource scarcity drives industrial companies to cut costs. Energy can be a significant component of such cuts, particularly for energy-intensive companies. Improving energy efficiency in industry is complex, as it pertains to various energy-using processes that are heavily intertwined. One such process is the compressed air system (CAS), which is used in most industrial companies worldwide. Since energy efficiency improvement measures for various types of energy-using processes differ, technology-specific measures might encounter different barriers to and drivers for energy efficiency. The same applies to the non-energy benefits (NEBs) related to energy efficiency improvement measures; since measures vary between various energy-using processes, the perceived NEBs might be different as well. The aim of this paper is to study the barriers to, drivers for and NEBs of CAS energy efficiency improvement measures from the perspectives of three actors. Carried out as an interview study combined with a questionnaire, the paper merges the perspectives of users, audit experts and suppliers of CASs. The results showed that the major barriers are related to the investment, or are of an organisational character, and that organisational and economic factors seemed to be important for making positive decisions on energy efficiency investments and measures in CASs. Major NEBs for CASs include productivity gains and the avoidance of capital expenditures. The results of this study also address the importance of having a comprehensive approach to recognise additional effects of energy efficiency improvements in CASs.     

Barriers to and drivers for energy efficiency in the Swedish foundry industry

Despite the need for increased industrial energy efficiency, studies indicate that cost-efficient energy conservation measures are not always implemented, explained by the existence of barriers to energy efficiency. This paper investigates the existence of different barriers to and driving forces for the implementation of energy efficiency measures in the energy intensive Swedish foundry industry. The overall results from a questionnaire show that limited access to capital constitutes by far the largest barrier to energy efficiency according to the respondents. A comparison between group-owned and privately owned foundries shows that, except for limited access to capital, they face different high-ranked barriers. While barriers within group owned companies are more related to organizational problems, barriers within private foundries are more related to information problems. This study also found that energy consultants or other actors working with energy issues in foundries are of major importance in overcoming the largest barriers, as the foundries consider them trustworthy. They may thus help the foundries overcome organizational problems such as lack of sub-metering and lack of budget funds by quantifying potential energy efficiency investments. The two, by far, most important drivers were found to be people with real ambition and long-term energy strategies.     

Placing barriers to industrial energy efficiency in a social context: a discussion of lifestyle categorisation

This paper compares how analyses of energy use and efficiency have developed in households and industrial small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). I focus on earlier studies that use lifestyle categories in examining household energy use, comparing them with studies of mainly Swedish industrial SMEs using the barrier concept in understanding energy efficiency. The main question is how the use of lifestyle categories in household research can be adapted to industrial SMEs. The rationale for using doing this is to find a new way to approach industrial energy use that can give new insight or raise new questions. Lifestyle categories capture the energy culture of a company, including how energy is perceived and what habits and routines are like. Lifestyle categorisation complements barrier analysis, deepening our understanding of how and why companies improve energy efficiency. Using lifestyle categories in an analysis can help policy makers, who can then direct specific policies to particular segments of companies.     

Energy efficiency in the food retail sector: barriers,drivers and acceptable policies

The objectives of this research are to examine empirically the drivers and barriers to energy efficiency measures in an important energy-using sector, namely, the food retail sector, and to gain an understanding of more effective energy efficiency policies in this sector. Although food retailers consume a significant amount of energy due to the specialised needs of stores, there has been little research on the barriers and drivers of energy efficiency measures in this sector. A survey of small food retailers was carried out to understand attitudes to energy efficiency measures and to examine the acceptability of different energy efficiency policy options. In addition, external stakeholders were consulted in order to validate and contextualise the results of the survey. We find that there is a complementary relationship between energy efficiency barriers and drivers for food retailers and that it is remarkably coherent. We identify policies, such as subsidies and support for ESCOs, that exploit both the complementarities between barriers and drivers and are acceptable to food retailers also. This methodology should help identify and design more effective policies to deliver energy efficiency improvements in the food retail and other services subsectors.     

工业企业系统节能诊断与能效分析

阐述系统节能诊断与能效分析的基本原理。通过对某针状焦生产企业实施节能诊断与能效分析,找出存在的耗能原因,并提出相应节能对策,估算可产生1000万元/a的节能效益。最终提出系统节能诊断与能效分析,可为企业提供全面、科学、准确的能源诊断,从而最大化挖掘企业自身的节能潜力。     

Motor systems energy efficiency supply curves: A methodology for assessing the energy efficiency potential of industrial motor systems

Motor-driven equipment accounts for approximately 60% of manufacturing final electricity use worldwide. A major barrier to effective policymaking, and to more global acceptance of the energy efficiency potential in industrial motor systems, is the lack of a transparent methodology for quantifying the magnitude and cost-effectiveness of these energy savings. This paper presents the results of groundbreaking analyses conducted for five countries and one region to begin to address this barrier. Using a combination of expert opinion and available data from the United States, Canada, the European Union, Thailand, Vietnam, and Brazil, bottom-up energy efficiency supply curve models were constructed to estimate the cost-effective electricity efficiency potentials and CO₂ emission reduction for three types of motor systems (compressed air, pumping, and fan) in industry for the selected countries/region. Based on these analyses, the share of cost-effective electricity saving potential of these systems as compared to the total motor system energy use in the base year varies between 27% and 49% for pumping, 21% and 47% for compressed air, and 14% and 46% for fan systems. The total technical saving potential varies between 43% and 57% for pumping, 29% and 56% for compressed air, and 27% and 46% for fan systems.     

UK innovation systems for new and renewable energy technologies: drivers,barriers and systems failures

A better understanding of the systemic processes by which innovation occurs is useful, both conceptually and to inform policy-making in support of innovation in more sustainable technologies. This paper analyses current innovation systems in the UK for a range of new and renewable energy technologies, and generates policy recommendations for improving the effectiveness of these innovation systems. Although incentives are in place in the UK to encourage innovation in these technologies, system failures—or ‘gaps’—are identified in moving technologies along the innovation chain, preventing their successful commercialisation. Sustained investment will be needed for these technologies to achieve their potential. It is argued that a stable and consistent policy framework is required to help create the conditions for this. In particular, such a framework should be aimed at improving risk/reward ratios for demonstration and pre-commercial stage technologies. This would enhance positive expectations, stimulate learning effects leading to cost reductions, and increase the likelihood of successful commercialisation.     

The social return on investment in the energy efficiency of buildings in Germany

The German government has developed a variety of policy instruments intended to reduce national CO₂ emissions. These instruments include a programme administered by KfW bank, which aims at improving the energy efficiency of buildings. It provides attractive credit conditions or subsidies to finance refurbishment measures which improve the energy efficiency of buildings significantly.     

Exergoeconomic aspects of sectoral energy utilization for Turkish industrial sector and their impact on energy policies

This study deals with this thermo-economic analysis of energy utilization in the industrial sector (IS) towards establishing energy policies. The relations between capital costs and thermodynamic losses for subsectors in the IS are investigated. In the analysis, Turkey is taken as an application country based on its actual data over the period from 1990 to 2003. Energy and exergy analyses are performed for eight industrial modes, namely iron–steel, chemical–petrochemical, petrochemical–feedstock, cement, fertilizer, sugar, non-metal industry, other industry. The energy and exergy utilization efficiency values for the entire Turkish IS are obtained to range from 63.45% to 70.11%, and from 29.72% to 33.23%, respectively. The ratio of thermodynamic loss rate-to-capital cost values is also calculated to vary from 0.76 to 1.01.     

Implementation and rejection of industrial steam system energy efficiency measures

Steam systems consume approximately one third of energy applied at US industrial facilities. To reduce energy consumption, steam system energy assessments have been conducted on a wide range of industry types over the course of 5 years through the Energy Savings Assessment (ESA) program administered by the US Department of Energy (US DOE). ESA energy assessments result in energy efficiency measure recommendations that are given potential energy and energy cost savings and potential implementation cost values. Saving and cost metrics that measure the impact recommended measures will have at facilities, described as percentages of facility baseline energy and energy cost, are developed from ESA data and used in analyses. Developed savings and cost metrics are examined along with implementation and rejection rates of recommended steam system energy efficiency measures. Based on analyses, implementation of steam system energy efficiency measures is driven primarily by cost metrics: payback period and measure implementation cost as a percentage of facility baseline energy cost (implementation cost percentage). Stated reasons for rejecting recommended measures are primarily based upon economic concerns. Additionally, implementation rates of measures are not only functions of savings and cost metrics, but time as well.     

浙江省工业锅炉产品定型能效测试浅析

按照锅炉燃料类型将浙江省锅炉制造企业生产的锅炉产品与全国的锅炉产品能效质量进行了比较;对产品能效测试过程中立式蒸汽锅炉结构、有机热载体锅炉系统设计、设计煤种匹配、燃生物质成型燃料锅炉负荷适应性、安装过程能效质量控制、锅炉的运行负荷工况、节能服务机构等影响锅炉运行能效的问题进行了分析;提出了通过规程实施、标准引领、落实责任、动员市场力量等手段,进一步推动锅炉节能工作的对策。     

Comparison of energy efficiency strategies in the industrial sector of Slovenia

More efficient use of energy is one of the national strategic issues for Slovenia. The new Energy Act of 1999 requires preparation of a national energy programme, to be based in part on an integrated resource planning approach at the national level. An industrial module was developed to form part of the applicable energy system analysis tools, namely a Reference Energy Model for PlaNet (PlaNet: Planning Network) under the MESAP (Modular Energy System Analysis and Planning Environment) system analysis package (Institute for Energy Economics and the Rational Use of Energy, University of Stuttgart). This bottom-up model allows for modelling of energy efficiency measures. The quandary of energy intensity versus energy efficiency was resolved by explicit presentation of a market valuation process for each industrial sector, which relates value added to a physical product indicator. Future structural changes and improvements of product value were developed, based on past trends and taking into consideration the contribution of sectors to the GDP in a “similar” country like Austria. At the process level, two strategies with different speed of introduction of energy efficiency measures were compared (Reference and Intensive) for the period from 1997 to 2020. Expedient activation of savings potentials brings economic benefits and reduction of direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions. Improvements to internal industrial conversion systems, notably cogeneration of electricity and heat, produce a major part of the overall efficiency gains.     

Industrial energy efficiency: the need for investment decision support from a manager perspective

Global competition, commitment to the Kyoto Protocol and a deregulated, integrated European electricity market will in all probability increase the demand for energy efficiency on the part of companies in Sweden. Investment decisions are an important part of meeting the new demands, because they decide the future efficiency of industrial energy systems. The objective of this study is to investigate, from a managerial perspective, the need to improve decision support in some industries, which can help to facilitate and improve investment decisions concerning energy efficiency. This work has been conducted through in-depth interviews with representatives for a number of energy-intensive companies and non-energy-intensive companies from different sectors. One need that was identified was the improvement of working methods in order to support the decision-making process. Here, external players seem to be playing an increasingly important role. Access to correct information, better follow-up activities, and transparent, understandable calculations are also considered to be important. The study will form the foundation for subsequent work on decision support and energy efficiency in industry.     

Integration of solar thermal for improved energy efficiency in low-temperature-pinch industrial processes

Solar thermal systems have the potential to provide renewable industrial process heat and are especially suited for low pinch temperature processes such as those in the food, beverage, and textile sectors. When correctly integrated within an industrial process, they can provide significant progress towards both increased energy efficiency and reduction in emissions. However, the integration of renewable solar energy into industrial processes presents a challenge for existing process integration techniques due to the non-continuous nature of the supply. A thorough pinch analysis study of the industrial process, taking in to account non-continuous operating rates, should be performed to evaluate the utility demand profile. Solar collector efficiency data under variable climatic conditions should also be collected for the specific site. A systematic method of combining this information leads to improved design and an optimal operating strategy. This approach has been applied to a New Zealand milk powder plant and benefits of several integration strategies, including mass integration, are investigated. The appropriate placement of the solar heat is analogous to the placement of a hot utility source and an energy penalty will be incurred when the solar thermal system provides heat below the pinch temperature.     

Future energy efficiency improvements within the US department of defense: Incentives and barriers

The present work describes the military impact of improved efficiency and then highlights existing technological, political, and financial barriers for improving overall energy efficiency. As the largest user of energy within the US government, the Department of Defense (DOD) is rightly concerned that any disruption to the nation's energy supply may have an extremely adverse impact on its military capabilities. The total solution to providing energy security will be multi-faceted with progress required on many fronts. Increasing the use of renewable energy sources and improving energy storage capabilities are gradually creating a positive impact, but investing in improving the overall efficiency of the military effort provides both immediate and long-lasting payback. One might suppose that a decrease in the energy used by the DOD should lead to a decrease in military capability, but historical data proves otherwise. It is shown that the military has additional impetus, compared to civilian consumers, to pursue energy-efficiency improvements. Many tools are available to help the DOD along this path, yet there remain obstacles which must first be identified and analyzed as discussed herein.