Avoided energy use attributable to energy-efficiency investments undertaken since 1974 has resulted in a contribution outstripping the annual consumption of oil, natural gas, electricity, and coal, according to a report by the International Energy Agency, a global NGO.
An analysis of energy consumption in 11 IEA member countries indicates that avoided annual energy use in 2010 was 63 exajoules, or the equivalent of 1.52 billion tonnes of oil. This avoided energy use was larger than the countries' consumption of oil (43 EJ), electricity and natural gas (22 EJ each), and coal (less than 10 EJ).
The equivalent cost of oil for 63 exajoules of energy would have been about $420 billionUS. (Countries included in the analysis were Australia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.)
Investments in energy efficiency measures have also reduced the amount of energy needed to produce each unit of gross domestic product, according to the report. As of 2011, total investment in energy efficiency resembled the supply-side investment in renewable or fossil-fuel electricity generation.
However, fossil-fuel development benefits from a much higher level of government subsidies than energy-efficiency measures. In 2011, fossil fuels were the recipient of more than $500 billion in global subsidies, compared with less than $100 billion in subsidies for renewable energy (below).
Table: Global investments and subsidy in selected areas of the energy system, 2011. Source: IEA.
The IEA indicates that governmental policy interventions are the most significant stimulant for energy-efficiency investments. High energy prices are also triggering expansion of the energy-efficiency market, though subsidies for fossil fuels continue to artifically reduce the price consumers pay for energy.
Performance improvements in buildings are targeted as an important factor in continued reduction of global energy use. The report discusses notable investments in this area by Germany, New Zealand, France, and Mexico, mainly involving residential construction.
For the medium term, the IEA predicts that private investment enabled by favorable government policies, rather than direct public investment, will continue to represent the greatest source of funding for energy-efficiency projects.
Influential changes in codes and standards in Canada, France, Germany, South Korea, China, Japan, and the U.K. should drive growth in the energy-efficiency sector. For the U.S., new standards for appliances and continued growth in the ESCO industry may be significant.
Continued savings should be possible during the next decade, according to the agency, perhaps amounting to about 7% of 2010's total global consumption--or greater than the combined current energy use of Australia, Japan, Korea, and New Zealand.
Click here for the full report.
The editors thank Grumman / Butkus Associates for bringing this report to our attention.
Related Stories
| Oct 11, 2010
Rhode Island is the first state to adopt IGCC
Rhode Island is the first state to adopt the International Green Construction Code (IGCC). The Rhode Island Green Buildings Act identifies the IGCC as an equivalent standard in compliance with requirements that all public agency major facility projects be designed and constructed as green buildings. The Rules and Regulations to implement the Act take effect in October 2010.
| Oct 8, 2010
Union Bank’S San Diego HQ awarded LEED Gold
Union Bank’s San Diego headquarters building located at 530 B Street has been awarded LEED Gold certification from the Green Building Certification Institute under the standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council. Gold status was awarded to six buildings across the United States in the most recent certification and Union Bank’s San Diego headquarters building is one of only two in California.
| Oct 6, 2010
Windows Keep Green Goals in View
The DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory has almost 600 window openings, and yet it's targeting LEED Platinum, net-zero energy use, and 50% improvement over ASHRAE 90.1. How the window ‘problem’ is part of the solution.
| Oct 6, 2010
From grocery store to culinary school
A former West Philadelphia supermarket is moving up the food chain, transitioning from grocery store to the Center for Culinary Enterprise, a business culinary training school.
| Sep 30, 2010
Luxury hotels lead industry in green accommodations
Results from the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s 2010 Lodging Survey showed that luxury and upper-upscale hotels are most likely to feature green amenities and earn green certifications. Results were tallied from 8,800 respondents, for a very respectable 18% response rate. Questions focused on 14 green-related categories, including allergy-free rooms, water-saving programs, energy management systems, recycling programs, green certification, and green renovation.
| Sep 16, 2010
Green recreation/wellness center targets physical, environmental health
The 151,000-sf recreation and wellness center at California State University’s Sacramento campus, called the WELL (for “wellness, education, leisure, lifestyle”), has a fitness center, café, indoor track, gymnasium, racquetball courts, educational and counseling space, the largest rock climbing wall in the CSU system.
| Sep 13, 2010
Second Time Around
A Building Team preserves the historic facade of a Broadway theater en route to creating the first green playhouse on the Great White Way.
| Sep 13, 2010
World's busiest land port also to be its greenest
A larger, more efficient, and supergreen border crossing facility is planned for the San Ysidro (Calif.) Port of Entry to better handle the more than 100,000 people who cross the U.S.-Mexico border there each day.
| Sep 13, 2010
'A Model for the Entire Industry'
How a university and its Building Team forged a relationship with 'the toughest building authority in the country' to bring a replacement hospital in early and under budget.
