Energy Efficiency Projects Research Articles

Green hotspots? Unveiling global hotspots and shifting trends in carbon credit projects

AbstractThis study examines the spatiotemporal patterns of verified carbon credit projects from 2004 to 2022, utilizing data from the Gold Standard Foundation (GSF) registry and employing spatial autocorrelation (Moran's I) and hot spot analysis (Getis‐Ord Gi*) in ArcGIS Pro. South Asia and East Africa emerged as key hotspots for carbon credit projects. Hotspots transitioned from China, Brazil, Peru, Panama, and Cambodia (2004–2016) to India, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda (2017–2022) with Turkey remaining a hotspot throughout the period. Overall, the analysis reveals a statistically significant Moran's I of 0.07 and a z‐score of 3.04, indicating spatial clustering of projects and a less than 1% likelihood that the clustering is a result of random chance. The spatial pattern and types of projects align with socio‐economic conditions and environmental protection objectives in different regions. Domestic energy efficiency projects are prevalent, such as improved cookstoves, biogas digesters, and borehole technologies for safe water access. These findings prompt the deduction that socio‐economic conditions wield substantial influence on investor preferences in carbon credit projects. Hence, the study contends that the overarching goal transcends mere carbon emissions mitigation; it extends to elevating the socio‐economic well‐being of local populations. By pinpointing geographical hotspots and elucidating temporal shifts, this study equips stakeholders with strategic insights into investment in carbon credit projects and highlights evolving investor interests in the carbon credit landscape, bridging the gap between environmental objectives and socio‐economic imperatives.

«KEGOC» КОМПАНИЯСЫНДА ӨНДІРІСТІК ЖАРАҚАТТАНУДЫҢ АЛДЫН АЛУДЫ ТАЛДАУ

This article discusses the problem of occupational injury prevention at «KEGOC». The authors analyze the current situation and present their recommendations for improving the occupational safety management system. The main focus is on electrical safety, which includes protection measures against the effects of electric current, electromagnetic field, electric arc and static electricity. The article presents data on the most common ways of passing current in the human body and on the effects of electricity on the body. «KEGOC» strives to create working conditions that meet the requirements of safety and hygiene, and is actively developing, using modern technologies and striving to increase its value for all stakeholders. The company is also actively engaged in social responsibility, implementing energy efficiency projects and environmental programs. The authors pay special attention to occupational safety and industrial safety. In particular, they emphasize the need to create safe working conditions, minimize injuries, improve production and sanitary conditions, as well as reduce the impact of harmful and adverse factors. In this context, the use of a health and safety management system is mentioned, which covers all structural divisions and subsidiaries of the company. An important aspect is the conduct of a behavioral safety audit and the implementation of the «KEGOC» JSC program on the occupational safety and health management system in accordance with the international standard ISO 45001. It also mentions the annual and shift medical examinations of employees and the availability of special labor protection services in each branch of the company. The article discusses the results of the analysis of occupational injuries and concludes that there is a need for continuous improvement of the risk management system and the introduction of innovative approaches to achieve maximum efficiency in the field of occupational safety and industrial safety.

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The national system of energy saving management in budget sector organizations is presented through the prism of the implementation of targeted directions for increasing the level of energy efficiency by the program-target method, the purpose of which is the concentration of resources of business entities and the construction of a unified energy efficiency management system and the coordination of efforts of both state and regional authorities, local self-government, institutions,etc. An important role is given to the components of the program-target method as a mechanism of state management of a unified system of state and regional authorities and local self-government bodies, institutions, etc., which, in particular, will ensure the coordination of energy components and the formation of an acceptable price for educational services. According to the results of the research, the need for the formation of an energy-efficient policy in each institution of higher education, despite its regional location, based on a comprehensive approach from the standpoint of a single energy space, has been actualized. The author considers the management of energy saving projects of the budget sector organization in relation to their energy security system, i.e. the management system of a budget institution from the standpoint of a single energy space, which provides an effective, reliable and ecologically safe environment, which is minimally affected by internal and external factors of energy saving, and is the guarantor of the quality of services, in particular energy services, provided to the population by public sector facilities. The main factors of energy efficiency of budget sector organizations, the procedure for implementing the energy saving and energy efficiency improvement program, the main factors of managing energy efficient projects in the budget sector, analytical tools for modeling their evaluation system and the stages of developing a scenario of an innovative model of their management are presented. The proposed technologies and tools can be used to build an innovative management model of energy saving projects of budget organizations, in particular, using the pyramid-aggregate modeling method.

Harnessing machine learning algorithms to unveil energy efficiency investment archetypes

Increasing transparency about the performance of different projects is crucial to reducing the heterogeneity in the energy efficiency services market, thereby upscaling investments. In this context, machine learning algorithms could assist in identifying and analyzing energy efficiency project archetypes, although this field has so far been explored with a limited view in the literature. This paper aims to address this gap by identifying energy efficiency investment families and the determinant factors of the classification scheme, using machine learning. In this effort, it hinges on a wide range of indicators from implemented projects around Europe and the USA, including investment profitability, initial investment, risk of failure, intervention type, life measure, region of implementation and building type. The analysis employs two clustering approaches, namely Partitioning Around Medoids (PAM) and K-means, determining the number of clusters based on the Silhouette index and total within–cluster sum of squares. The results indicate that energy efficiency investments can be classified into three categories: (i) “junk investments”, characterized by low–profitability (IRR∼10%), moderate risk, and extended horizons; (ii) “safe profitability”, distinguished by high profitability (IRR∼30%) and minimal risk; and (iii) “high stakes”, described by exceptionally high profitability (IRR∼40%), coupled with a substantial risk. Next to profitability and risk of failure, also energy efficiency intervention and building type (sector) emerge among the most influential factors in the classification scheme. Feature importance shows a significant sensitivity to the chosen classification model.

Assessment of Energy Efficiency Projects at Russian Mining Enterprises within the Framework of Sustainable Development

Assessment of Energy Efficiency Projects at Russian Mining Enterprises within the Framework of Sustainable Development

Energy-saving potential benchmarking method of office buildings based on probabilistic forecast

Building energy consumption represents a substantial portion of China's total energy usage profile. Conducting a quantitative assessment of the energy-saving potential in buildings is crucial, as it aids in estimating the investment risk and payback period for energy-efficient projects. This evaluation also informs the development and formulation of policies promoting building retrofits and energy conservation. However, this field's present state of research exhibits a significant gap. This study takes 8 typical office buildings as case objects and conducts relevant research on quantitative evaluation of energy-saving potential. On the basis of quantile regression, three corresponding probabilistic forecasting models for building energy consumption are established by combining the classic time series prediction algorithm Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) in data-driven methods, Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT) in known building energy benchmarking, and a relatively simple linear model. The evaluation results demonstrate that the LSTM-QR model can serve effectively as a probabilistic forecasting model for estimating building energy-saving potential. Based on the LSTM-QR model results, a quantitative evaluation method for building energy-saving potential benchmarking is proposed, utilizing linearized Cumulative Distribution Function (CDF) curves. This method can quantitatively assess the energy-saving potential of the studied buildings. By analyzing and comparing these buildings' hourly energy consumption data over the past three years, it is evident that the quantitative scoring results from this method can provide directional guidance for building renovation projects to enhance energy efficiency.

Exploring the complex interplay of green finance, business cycles, and energy development

Green finance has emerged as a contemporary mechanism to support investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and sustainable infrastructure projects. This study aims to provide empirical insights into the asymmetric influence of green finance and business cycle fluctuations on energy development in 60 developing countries from 2000 to 2021. Four aspects of energy development, including energy access, stability, efficiency, and production gap, are examined using panel quantile regression with additive fixed effects. The research findings demonstrate that green finance plays a significant role in fostering energy development, with varying effects across different quantiles of the distribution. Specifically, the results indicate that green finance supports energy access and stability, particularly during economic recession, low-income levels, and limited technological advancement. However, the impact of green finance on energy efficiency exhibits notable heterogeneity, contingent upon technological and periods of economic expansion. Achieving tangible improvements in energy efficiency necessitates a certain level of technological and economic development. Moreover, green finance shows a capacity to maintain an optimal level of energy production, particularly evident during economic expansion and for highly technologically developed countries. The impact of business cycle fluctuations varies across different quantile distributions of energy development indicators, predominantly exerting an inhibitory effect of economic recession. In light of these results, it is recommended that policies in developing countries be revised to enhance energy access, optimize energy production levels, and promote the cost-effectiveness of renewable energy in conjunction with green finance initiatives.

Energy efficiency practices: A case study analysis of innovative business models in buildings

Over the last two decades, the European Union has significantly improved its legal framework for building energy efficiency. New mandatory standards have led governments to adopt incentive measures that, in turn, encourage the growth of innovative entrepreneurial practices. This study analyzes emerging business models that capitalize on energy efficiency in the building industry. Thirty-seven energy efficiency projects − either retrofit or new construction, supported exclusively by innovative business models featuring the presence of an individual contractor − in five Central and Western European countries are considered. Data is collected on property characteristics, business environment, and energy efficiency measures. Using the Rough Set approach, the analysis identifies core attributes that associate or differentiate the case studies. They include building ownership, energy-related services to be provided to the users, and the duration for which the contractor must be involved. Additionally, other attributes − such as the types of retrofit work, investment costs, access to monetary incentives, and expected payback period − allow us to identify the cases representing best practices for each innovative model. There remain open questions concerning where the boundary between different business models lies and long-term economic self-sustainability, regardless of the availability of incentives.

Development of Municipal Energy Management as Trigger of Future Energy Savings

Directive 2018/844/EU on energy efficiency claims that almost 80% of the final energy consumption in the EU is used within the buildings. The subsequent Directive (EU) 2023/1791 introduced in 2023 expected 68% of the world population to live in urban areas. Both directives enhanced the role of energy management (EM) applied to the city buildings. This paper introduces the development of energy management in Czech municipalities between the years 2009 and 2023. The main goal of this article is to present selected results of the unique national survey focused on the energy management in Czech municipalities conducted in 2023 and compare it with results of national surveys implemented in 2009 and 2018. The main method is the comparing of two surveys conducted among the municipal representatives or energy managers in the past with the new survey conducted in 2023. The results show that EM became a notably more important issue for most Czech municipalities. The number of cities collecting data on energy consumption grew by 288% and the number of city energy managers increased by 57%. On the other hand, the used potential of energy savings triggered by establishing EM was insufficient and only 4% of the respondents claimed high and exactly measured savings because of EM. This article should be applied to the stress power of municipal EM in performing energy efficiency and RES projects and encouraging the government to support municipal energy managers in their complex role.

Impact of life cycle assessment analysis on energy efficiency projects in Mediterranean residential buildings

The 2023 revision of the Energy Performance of Building Directive underlines the need to consider the whole life cycle emissions for buildings. The decarbonization targets could not be achieved if reduction of energy demand in the operational phase is accompanied by a high energy resource use in the whole life. This paper proposes a novel investigation of an energy renovation project, involving both building envelope components and space heating system. The adopted method is based on the life cycle assessment, in the variant cradle-to-gate with options, to analyze and compare the design data achieved through an analysis of product (embodied) and use (operational) stages. Different solutions for energy improvement of the building performance are identified, and the scenario with the lowest embodied energy was found to be more energy efficient globally. The most effective scenario, with energy and CO2 savings of 39% and 40% is characterized by a weight of embodied energy and emissions of 6.5% and 6.9%, respectively. Given the rise of the weight of the embodied energy in the whole life cycle of future buildings, the life cycle assessment will become crucial for sustainable design and in the transition to an energy-efficiency built environment.

A Holonic Construction Management System for the Efficient Implementation of Building Energy Renovation Actions

In the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry, many efforts have provided remarkable contributions to construction planning and control processes during work execution. Nevertheless, frequent coordination issues among stakeholders and difficulties in dealing with unexpected events can be explained by the complexity featuring the construction sector. Several approaches to deal with this issue were investigated in the manufacturing area, among which this paper looks at the holonic approach as one of the most promising strategies. This study first analyzes the more fragmented and dynamic nature of the construction industry as compared with the manufacturing one. Secondly, it suggests developing a process-based holonic construction management system based on building information modeling (BIM) and a conceptual architecture for manufacturing control called Product Resource Order Staff Architecture (PROSA). The process-based paradigm ensures exploiting the benefits of BIM towards the development of sustainable and efficient regeneration methods of the built environment. Subsequently, a first management system prototype was developed and tested for the purpose of renovation works management. For the first time, results from an actual implementation of PROSA were applied to a real construction site, and its feasibility was assessed using the data on the field. Key performance indicators (KPIs) evaluated during the onsite demonstration confirmed a good performance of PROSA and the presented holonic approach, which contributed to the overall success of the energy efficient refurbishment project.

Energy efficiency investment in a developing economy: financial development and debt status implication

PurposeThis study aims to assess financial development and debt status impact on energy efficiency in Nigeria as a developing economy.Design/methodology/approachThis study combined the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL), fully modified ordinary least squares and canonical cointegration regression analytical methods to estimate the parameters for energy efficiency policy recommendations. Secondary data between 1990 and 2020 were used for the analysis.FindingsThe result confirms the long-run nexus between energy efficiency, financial development and total debt stock. Furthermore, the ARDL estimates for this study’s key variables show that financial development promotes energy efficiency in the short run but hinders long-run energy efficiency. Total debt stock limits energy efficiency in Nigeria in short- and long-run periods.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this study is that the scope is limited to Nigeria as a developing economy. The need to support energy efficiency projects is a global call requiring cross-country analysis. Despite this study’s focus on Nigeria, it provides useful insights that can guide energy efficiency policy through the financial sector and debt management.Practical implicationsThe financial sector must ensure the availability of long-term credit facilities to clean energy investors. The government must maintain a sustainable debt profile to pave the way for capital expenditure on clean energy projects that promote energy efficiency.Originality/valueThe environmental consequences of energy intensity are being felt globally, with the developing countries most vulnerable. The cheapest way to curb these consequences is to promote energy efficiency to reduce the disastrous effect. Driving energy efficiency requires investment in energy-efficient technology but the challenge for developing economies, i.e. Nigeria’s funding, remains challenging amid a blotted debt profile. This becomes crucial to investigate how financial sector development and debt management can accelerate energy-efficient investments in Nigeria.

ІНТЕГРАЦІЯ ПРИНЦИПІВ SMART-CITY ТА ЗАПРОВАДЖЕННЯ ЕНЕРГЕТИЧНИХ ІННОВАЦІЙ У ПРОЦЕС ПІСЛЯВОЄННОЇ ВІДБУДОВИ БЛАГОУСТРОЮ АДМІНІСТРАТИВНО-ТЕРИТОРІАЛЬНИХ ОДИНИЦЬ

The article explores the possibilities and challenges of integrating Smart City principles and energy innovations into the post-war reconstruction process of administrative-territorial units. In today's world, where environmental pollution and efficient use of energy resources are becoming increasingly critical, implementing energy-efficient projects in urban development has become necessary for community development. One of the essential aspects of successfully implementing energy-efficient projects is their integration into the city's strategic planning. To address challenges such as financial constraints and technical difficulties, implementing energy-efficient projects will bring numerous benefits, including emission reduction, energy consumption reduction, and improvement of urban environment quality. Since many urban amenities in Ukraine having suffered damage during the war, there is an increased opportunity for the restoration of progressive and modern spaces using advanced technologies. This new stage of reconstruction includes adopting innovative approaches, such as using alternative energy sources, implementing energy-saving systems, introducing Smart City principles, greening territories, and more. This opens up opportunities for creating modern, environmentally friendly, and energy-efficient spaces that improve the quality of life and restore administrative-territorial units' infrastructure. The article explores key concepts such as smart technologies, energy efficiency, and sustainable development while presenting the fundamental principles and mechanisms for implementing these principles in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine. Utilizing the case-study method, the article highlights the best practices for implementing Smart City principles worldwide. Additionally, the authors examine the advantages and obstacles associated with adopting these principles.

Optimization of energy consumption in HPC centers: Energy Efficiency Project of Castile and Leon Supercomputing Center - FCSCL

Supercomputers are very intensive in energy consumption. Large clusters are composed of hundreds or thousands of processors working in parallel, as is easily seen, the processors are the system component that consumes the most. An indicative figure is that a standard server tripled their consumption when their processors work at 100% load. In addition, we must say that the power consumption of computers is converted into heat at a high rate, which causes that the power consumption of the Supercomputing Center is a bigger problem than the general-purpose data centers. These reasons force to design new systems (data centers and computer) with the most efficient energy balance, which means to have low PUE (Power Usage Efectiveness). This article shows the PUE monitoring and control system implanted in Calendula, the FCSCL Supercomputer

Analysis of business models for delivering energy efficiency through smart energy services to the European commercial rented sector.

In this paper, we perform a comparative analysis of business models used by Energy Service Companies (ESCOs), suitable for the deployment of energy efficiency measures in the commercial rented sector across Europe. These models can effectively contribute to solving the split-incentive issue that arises in the rented building scenario. Some of them are obtained from their "traditional" counterparts, which do not consider the rented scenario, but just a bipartite agreement between an Energy Service Company and its client. The EU Horizon 2020 project SmartSPIN (Smart energy services to solve the SPlit INcentive problem in the commercial rented sector) targets delivery of enhanced energy services for commercial rented sector. These enhanced energy services (a) combine demand management services and energy efficiency interventions, (b) facilitate the adoption of renewables, (c) optimize the balance between demand and supply, (d) alleviate the split incentive issue. The pilot implementation of SmartSPIN is in progress in a business park in Greece, in an office building in Ireland and in two shopping centers in Spain. Key recommendations toward the implementation of such a smart energy service are provided in this paper. They have been obtained from a detailed analysis of ten interviews of key stakeholders of the energy efficiency sector and of the commercial rented sector, along with an analysis of a selection of the most relevant technical literature. This paper argues that the classical shared savings and guaranteed savings ESCOs models may be adapted to the commercial rented sector and used at SmartSPIN's demonstration sites in Spain, Greece and Ireland. The guaranteed savings model appears to be the most appropriate one to use when the building owner is funding the energy efficiency project using own funds or liaising directly with a bank or other finance provider. The validation method for the comparative analysis of business models and selection of the most appropriate one is based on both literature review and consultation of selected stakeholders' (stakeholder value creation framework).

ОЦЕНКА ВЛИЯНИЯ ТЕХНОЛОГИЙ НА ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКУЮ ЭФФЕКТИВНОСТЬ ЭЛЕКТРОСНАБЖЕНИЯ В ПРОМЫШЛЕННОСТИ

This article is devoted to the analysis and assessment of the economic effect of power supply technologies in industry. The paper examines current trends in the development of the electric power industry and methods for assessing the economic efficiency of the introduction of new technologies. Special attention is paid to examples of successful implementation of energy efficiency projects in industry. Based on the analysis of the factors influencing the efficiency assessment, the article offers prospects for the development of this area and recommendations for optimizing the use of electricity in industry.

Innovative business models for energy retrofitting in supermarkets with the engagement of customers

The European Union aims to cut emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and to be climate neutral by 2050. In order to achieve this goal, it’s fundamental that all actors across all sectors take their part in the transition by triggering investments in renewables and energy efficiency. Supermarkets could play a key role in this process, both for the high energy consumption related to their buildings and for the particular attention they pay to corporate social responsibility, including sustainability. In this context, the Super-Heero project has aimed at providing the supermarkets with innovative tools and models to deploy energy efficiency investments to cut energy consumptions and costs and, at the same time, improving their corporate social image. Moreover, Super-Heero explores new schemes to leverage on energy efficiency projects to engage customers and increase their loyalty through specific reward schemes and dedicated communication campaigns. This paper summarizes the concepts, models and approach developed in the project.

Development and Application of an Integrated BIM-GIS System for the Energy Management of Buildings

Urban planning and land cover management represent crucial challenges in the design and sustainable development of cities from the perspective of energy management. This article presents a methodology for integrating Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as an advanced tool for building energy management, allowing to combine detailed information about the physical aspects of the building with geospatial and environmental data. While BIM enables the integrated design, construction, and management of buildings and infrastructure, GIS provides spatial analysis based on geographical data. However, integrating these two approaches is complex, particularly regarding data formats, scale, and accuracy. This study, therefore, presents the application of a new integration environment, Autodesk InfraWorks, which combines Autodesk Revit and ArcGIS for a complete visualization of models in a GIS context. Illustrating the implementation of this approach in an energy efficiency project in the Municipality of Reggio Calabria (Italy), this article demonstrates how the convergence of BIM and GIS can improve urban planning and land cover management, promoting sustainable development practices in the city. This integration has the potential to significantly benefit urban power systems by offering a holistic view of building energy management within a broader urban context. It enables urban planners to make informed decisions that consider energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, and overall urban development, leading to a more efficient and resilient power system.

Towards Efficient Energy Usage at Ain Shams University Campus

In the light of global energy transition to renewable resources and energy efficiency usage, Ain Shams University (ASU) developed an ambitious plan to transform its campus into Green Campus. From an energy perspective, energy consumption data were continuously collected and audited to calculate the university campus carbon footprint. An energy usage strategy was established to tackle various pillars such as electrifying the campuses’ transportation system, improving energy efficiency usage, generating Renewable Energy (RE) for self-consumption, etc. Extensive research has been initiated on electric vehicles, wind and solar Photovoltaic (PV) energy generation with students’ activities/competitions. Thus, electric cars and buses were manufactured at the Faculty of Engineering (FoE) for elderly people and staff movement in ASU campus. Solar PV lighting poles with batteries were installed in the main campus. A small-scale Wind Turbine (WT) is manufactured and installed at the FoE and a pilot solar PV system is installed as well. Currently, an energy efficiency project is under implementation in various buildings/faculties and a parking lot that targets energy efficiency and solar PV energy generation. An energy efficiency measure is under implementation through replacing lamps with LED lamps, installing motion sensors, setting up a control center for monitoring and operation that is supported by Artificial Intelligence decision making algorithms. Rooftop solar PV energy systems are under design with smart meters. The project is targeting energy saving and bill reduction by at least 30% and as a result a reduction of carbon footprint will be achieved following the COP27 recommendations.

How Viable are Energy Savings in Smart Homes? A Call to Embrace Rebound Effects in Sustainable HCI

As part of global climate action, digital technologies are seen as a key enabler of energy efficiency savings. A popular application domain for this work is smart homes. There is a risk, however, that these efficiency gains result inrebound effects, which reduce or even overcompensate the savings. Rebound effects are well-established in economics, but it is less clear whether they also inform smart energy research in other disciplines. In this paper, we ask: to what extent have rebound effects and their underlying mechanisms been considered in computing, HCI and smart home research? To answer this, we conducted a literature mapping drawing on four scientific databases and a SIGCHI corpus. Our results reveal limited consideration of rebound effects and significant opportunities for HCI to advance this topic. We conclude with a taxonomy of actions for HCI to address rebound effects and help determine the viability of energy efficiency projects.