Tackle the barriers to energy efficiency, ABB executive says

Using energy more efficiently is the best solution to the triple challenge of increasing the global supply of energy while lowering environmental impact and costs, the head of ABB’s Power Systems division, Peter Leupp, said in a keynote address at the World Energy Congress.

It also offers the biggest opportunity, he said, referring to International Energy Agency data showing that energy efficiency can contribute more of the required CO2 cuts than all the other solutions put together.

“The energy challenges we face today are very real: meeting the expected growth in demand while curbing climate change is daunting enough, and doing it in a cost-effective way even more so,” Leupp said. “Energy efficiency in all its forms is the solution best able to address our three challenges of providing for growth in demand while reducing emissions and minimizing costs.”

However, it is important to recognize the barriers that are preventing societies from seizing the opportunities, he said. For example, consumers are often ill-informed and don’t make rational choices, while the potential for savings is highly fragmented and spread across industries, locations and consumers.

Further barriers are apathy among individuals, who may feel change requires more time and effort than they are willing to make, and the fact that energy is relatively cheap further hinders their willingness to take action, Leupp added. Often, there is little or no incentive to pay extra for more efficient equipment perhaps because, as is frequently the case in industry, the purchasing manager is not the one who pays the energy bill.

The example of Japan shows that the barriers can be overcome, he said. Japan is the most energy efficient economy, using half as much primary energy per $1 of gross domestic product than the US.

“We need to recognize that there are many barriers to the efficient use of energy that will require a concerted effort on several fronts to overcome,” Leupp said. “Japan is the best practice model we have today and we can learn many lessons from what it has done, and adapt them to our own markets where necessary.”