VAT issues arise again in Britain

In February 2013, EiD had a post by Andrew Warren of the Association for the Conservation of Energy on the European Commission’s demand that VAT rise (again) to the rate of 20%. He and many others had argued for years about the importance of the lower rate of 5% but the Commission argued that the … Continue reading VAT issues arise again in Britain →

Low hanging fruit or strawberries?

Matt Golden argues in an article on the GreenTech website in favour of a new path forward for energy efficiency based on markets. EiD certainly recommends you to read this. Let’s Get Real: The Energy Efficiency Industry Can Do Better In my last Greentech Media article, I looked at the limitations of top-down energy … Continue reading Low hanging fruit or strawberries? →

New report on the key to reducing cities’ emissions

A report released by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) finds that transitioning to modern district energy systems could reduce primary energy consumption by up to 50%. The resulting emission reductions could amount to 60% of those required of the energy sector by 2050 to keep average temperature rise below 2°C, according to the report, titled … Continue reading New report on the key to reducing cities’ emissions →

The urgent need to raise Australia’s productivity through ‘energy opportunities’

Keith Orchison writes in Australia’s Business Spectator about the almost totally ignored opportunities to increase the country’s productivity, that lags significantly below the OECD average. This is a good article that brings lessons to all of us. The deafening silence on energy efficiency At a point where teeth-grinding over energy policy (or the lack … Continue reading The urgent need to raise Australia’s productivity through ‘energy opportunities’ →

Display energy certificates on trial

The EU’s Energy Performance of Buildings Directive gives considerable importance to consumers and the general public in knowing and understanding the energy performance of buildings. For public buildings, the idea was to have Display Energy Certificates (DECs) that would allow the public know the performance of buildings that were deemed part of the public space. … Continue reading Display energy certificates on trial →

Buildings coming up to measure . . .

George Putic writes a very interesting article on the Voice of America website about how new technology is dealing with energy simulation, thermo-modeling or architectural design. He argues that what is needed in designing many retrofits is precise configuration of buildings, something that has been very difficult to obtain without great expense. Now a new … Continue reading Buildings coming up to measure . . . →

Focus on financing energy efficiency

When we are discussing the EU’s energy efficiency strategy, the elephant in the room is money: where does the funding come from and will there be enough to meet investment needs. On the one hand, most energy efficiency measures are considered to be cost effective and thus it is in the interest of consumers to … Continue reading Focus on financing energy efficiency →

How to get conservatives to save energy

Chris Mooney writes an important article in the Washington Post about what type of message it takes to convince conservatives to take action to save energy. It is an important article for all of us to reflect on. This is part of a series in the Washington Post on “Your Brain on Energy.” Want … Continue reading How to get conservatives to save energy →

Fuel economy ratings tighten in US

Aaron Kessler writes in the New York Times about the Environmental Protection Agency tightening the guidelines used in determining the mileage advertised to consumers. E.P.A. Issues Stiffer Rules on Vehicle Fuel Ratings After two years of imposing increasingly stiff penalties on automakers that overstate their fuel economy ratings, federal regulators on Monday said they … Continue reading Fuel economy ratings tighten in US →

The importance of measuring the performance of energy efficiency programmes

Nate Adams, from Energy Smart Home Performance writes a good article on the Energy Efficiency Markets website about the new technology that will help programs track actual or real-time savings that occur from various programs and upgrades they encourage. Measured Results are Coming to Energy Efficiency Programs. Are You Ready? “What gets measured, … Continue reading The importance of measuring the performance of energy efficiency programmes →