Energy efficiency agreements: Companies and municipalities cut annual energy use by nearly 9 TWh

NordenBladet — With the measures implemented in 2017–2020, nearly 600 companies and 112 municipalities and joint municipal authorities that have signed voluntary energy efficiency agreements were able to cut energy use by a total of 8.9 terawatt hours (TWh) annually at the end of 2020. The savings achieved equal the annual energy use of nearly 450,000 electrically heated single-family houses.These measures reduced the annual carbon dioxide emissions of the companies and organisations by a total of approximately 2 million tonnes and their annual energy costs by more than EUR 350 million at the end of 2020.“Energy efficiency agreements have demonstrated their effectiveness. Finland is one of the few EU Member States where the voluntary agreement procedure is effective and produces good results, as these results again show. The annual savings achieved in 2020 account for about 2.5% of Finland’s total energy consumption in 2020,” says Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä.Investing more than EUR 760 million in energy efficiency in four yearsThe companies and municipalities that have joined the agreement invested a total of approximately EUR 764 million in energy efficiency between 2017 and 2020. The energy-intensive industry and the energy sector have invested the most in efficiency measures in euro terms. However, the service and real estate sectors have implemented the largest number of measures. Over the four years, the organisations that have signed the agreement have carried out nearly 15,000 individual measures to improve energy efficiency.Between 2017 and 2020, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment supported energy efficiency investments by a total of EUR 77.6 million in companies and organisations that have joined the agreements concerning the business, municipal or real estate sectors. Support was granted to 764 projects that could not have been realised without it. Mid-term objective for 2017–2025 achievedThe sectors participating in the agreements are Finnish Forest Industries, Finnish Food and Drink Industries’ Federation, Finnish Energy, Chemical Industry Federation of Finland, Federation of Finnish Technology Industries, Finnish Commerce Federation, Finnish Hospitality Association MaRa, Confederation of Finnish Industries, Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities, and Finnish Association of Building Owners and Construction Clients.The organisations that have joined the energy efficiency agreements have set themselves an energy saving target of at least 7.5% in energy volumes by 2025. The target is based on the organisation’s energy consumption during the year prior to its joining the agreement. The organisations are already making good progress towards achieving the efficiency target. The majority of sectors have clearly exceeded the interim targets.What are energy efficiency agreements? Energy Efficiency Agreements are an important part of Finland’s Energy and Climate Strategy and the primary means for promoting efficient use of energy in Finland. The agreements implement the energy efficiency obligations laid down in the EU’s Energy Efficiency Directive and monitor their fulfilment. A large number of companies in the industrial, energy and service sectors as well as municipalities have signed the agreements. Their energy use accounts for about 60% of Finland’s total energy consumption. The current agreement period is valid until 2025.

Source: Valtioneuvosto.fi