Enigin Update - Experts Call for Energy Efficiency Policies for buildings
THIRTY of Europe’s leading energy efficiency executives released an open letter last week calling for the European Union to push policies for the energy efficiency of buildings.
The letter was published simultaneously in Le Monde, the Financial Times, the Handelsblatt, Berlingske, and the European Voice. It urges European ministers to favour policies that will drive the renovation of buildings which account for almost 40 percent of the region’s overall energy consumption.
“Energy ministers have a once in a generation opportunity to shape Europe’s future. We can continue to build increasing numbers of power stations and increase our energy imports or we can start to take real action to reduce demand. The costs of inaction are clear to all - energy efficiency is the silver bullet to our energy challenges that governments seem unwilling to fire.” said Jakob Sørensen, Senior Vice President at Rockwool, one of the energy efficiency executives.
Buildings account for about 40 percent of the overall energy end use across the EU and offer the highest cost-effective potential savings. One of the greatest contributors to climate change is the burning of fossil fuels to provide energy to heat or cool our buildings.
Enigin Plc and Enigin Distributors strongly support the principles of “trias energetica”, which is first to reduce the demand for energy, second to fulfill remaining energy demand from renewable sources as far as possible, and third to only then top up supply with efficient use of fossil fuels.
The open letter sent to ministers in part reads:
Dear Commissioner Oettinger, Dear Ministers,
Recent environmental disasters as well as turmoil in the energy market have underlined the energy challenges that we face. We need affordable, secure and safe energy for our economies to grow and for our citizens to prosper.
You have the opportunity to help address this once in a generation challenge. You can continue the policies of the past or pursue a better, brighter energy future by making Europe’s buildings more energy efficient.
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.
Working together we can create local jobs, reduce Europe’s CO2 footprint and ensure that we are less likely to suffer from foreign energy shocks.
We urge you to ensure that energy saving is made a national and European priority.
You can make a start by ensuring that energy saving is given equal weight to energy production in Europe’s 2050 Energy Road Map.
Picture of European Union Parliament by Xavier Larrosa
