Abstract
The implementation of monitoring tools and energy management systems (EnMSs) supports companies in their long-term energy efficiency strategies, and they are essential to analyse the effectiveness of energy performance improvement actions (EPIAs). The first fundamental step towards increasing energy efficiency is the development of energy audits (EAs). EAs provide comprehensive information about the energy usage in a specific facility, identifying and quantifying cost-effective EPIAs. The crucial role of these tools in clean energy transition is remarked by the European Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), which promotes the implementation of EAs and EnMS programmes. The purpose of this work is to better understand the link between EnMSs (specifically ISO 50001) and EAs in the EED Article 8 implementation in two industrial and two tertiary sectors in Italy. Moreover, the impact of company size, energy monitoring systems, and EnMSs on planned and/or implemented EPIAs is analysed. Our findings show that, albeit the complexity of the variables involved in energy efficiency gap, the “energy savings/company” and “EPIA/site” ratios are higher in enterprises with an EnMS and monitoring system. Thus, a correct energy audit must always be accompanied by a specific monitoring plan if it is to be effective and useful to the company decision maker.
Highlights
The Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU (EED) [1] is one of the pillars of European legislation on energy
The two manufacturing sectors evaluated in this study present some important insights in terms of energy performance improvement actions (EPIAs) distribution among the different categories analysed (ISO 50001-certified sites, sites with energy monitoring systems, and size class)
50001-certified and monitored sites presented a higher degree of implementation of EPIAs per site compared with the sites without energy management systems (EnMSs) or monitoring systems
Summary
The Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU (EED) [1] (and the 2018/2002 directive amendment [2]) is one of the pillars of European legislation on energy. EED Article 8 is fully devoted to the promotion of cost-effective high-quality energy audits and the implementation of energy management systems. These are two crucial tools to evaluate the existing energy consumption, to identify all the opportunities to save energy, and to implement a continuous improvement on energy efficiency in the industry and in enterprises. The development of energy audits is the first step towards overcoming the main barriers to implementing energy efficiency actions [3]. The Italian government transposed the EED in 2014 and 2020
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