This week’s briefs

There are several news briefs for you this week.

 

• France takes on banks to expand energy efficiency renovations

A debate in the French parliament this week pitted providers of third-party financing for energy efficiency upgrades against traditional banks. The banks are not willing to offer the financing at affordable rates, but they fear that allowing non-traditional forms of financing could challenge their monopoly on lending.

Le Monde reports that the regional governments of France are anxious to exploit the potential for energy savings and jobs in the energy efficiency renovation sector. Many regions have developed one-stop services for homeowners that offer personalized advice, building energy audits, coordination and monitoring of renovations, and financing – including third-party financing which allows the contractor to offer loans up-front with loan repayments coming from energy savings.

As part of its debate on energy transition, the Assemblée Nationale focused on the financing element. Third-party financing was fiercely opposed by the banks, which argue that only banks are subject to the prudential regulation that covers all lending. The regional governments and the minister of ecology, sustainable development and energy, Ségolène Royal, counter that the contractors are not challenging the banks’ monopoly and point to the advantages of the one-stop approach where financing is only part of an efficient package the ensures good work and high energy savings.

Le Monde points out that this kind of obstacle needs to be removed because buildings represent 40 percent of energy consumption and 25 percent of greenhouse gases. One region alone – Picardie – plans 10,000 renovations, creating 500 jobs annually, in what their spokesman call says ‘extremely important repercussions for the economy’.

 

• Australia’s National Energy Efficiency Conference 2014

The National Energy Efficiency Conference 2014, run by the Energy Efficiency Council, is Australia’s premier annual event for energy efficiency, demand-management and cogeneration.

Taking place on 11/12 November at Swissotel Sydney, Australia the event will bring together up to 300 leading thinkers from business and government to hear about the latest local and global thinking about saving energy.

Key sessions include Gas & Efficiency, the Future of Energy Management, Dealing with Excess Capacity and much more. The program will feature presentations from ministers and international and national experts, a range of workshops and technical sessions, networking opportunities, an exhibition and the third Annual Energy Efficiency Industry Awards and Gala Dinner.

This conference is considered essential attendance for senior figures with an interest in energy efficiency.

Further information and registration is available on the EEC website.

 

• New report on financing building energy renovations 2014

The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) has come out with a new report on financing. With the right set of policy tools, it is generally accepted that governments can play a crucial role in promoting energy efficiency and leveraging more investments in the building sector, especially in the existing stock. Indeed there is a wide range of policies at EU level which require Member States to set a number of regulatory, informative and economic measures with the aim to improve the energy performance of buildings. What is clear is that the existing policy mix needs to be reviewed as experience shows that actual energy efficiency investments in this segment of the building stock neither meet the scale nor the quality aligned with its overall potential. For now, economic instruments appear to dominate the policy framework for existing buildings, while the need for more market action and enhanced private sector involvement is increasingly highlighted as this offers the only sustainable route for scaling up existing efforts. This report deals with the importance of existing economic instruments in leveraging energy efficiency investments in buildings, examines their effectiveness in delivering energy savings as well as relation with other policy types. Based on experiences drawn from current practices, it increases our understanding of the type, scope and mix of economic instruments best suited to tackle demand-side energy use in existing buildings. The report also identifies innovative financing mechanisms and proposes other measures beyond current practices, which can further stimulate the market and offer more scalable solutions.

Information on the report is available on the JRC website.

 

• eceee event in October

The European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (eceee) will be hosting the launch of the 2014 IEA energy efficiency market report on October 21st in Brussels. In the 2013 edition energy efficiency was referred to as a “hidden fuel” (but justly dubbed the First Fuel, see eceee news), one that extends energy supplies, increases energy security, lowers carbon emissions and generally supports sustainable economic growth. Yet it is hiding in plain sight.

The meeting will also present the results of the previously published IEA report on multiple benefits of energy efficiency.

Information is available on the eceee website.

 

• IEA workshop on accelerating SME energy efficiency

The IEA is organising a workshop on November 27th on policies and approaches to stimulate energy efficiency in SMEs as part of the process of developing a publication with actionable guidance to policy makers and other stakeholders. The aim of the workshop is to bring together stakeholders and interested parties to discuss how to effectively promote energy efficiency in small and medium sized enterprises and how to strengthen the business case for energy efficiency. Discussions will cover policies, support mechanisms and access to finance. We will explore the roles that different stakeholders can play in creating favourable conditions for energy efficiency implementation and discuss how this can be incentivised. The workshop will be an opportunity to share experiences in policy development and implementation, the development of targeted financial mechanisms, private – public partnerships and to discuss how lessons learned can be used as a foundation to develop new approaches.

The workshop is by invitation only. For those interested in participating, please contact EiD.