Managing energy use is the key to transition to renewables.
Author: Renew Economy Date Posted:13 June 2019
Energy Efficiency can be simple
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A new report by the Energy Efficiency Council shows that other countries are delivering huge cuts to energy bills by managing how and when they use energy, while Australia has made almost no progress in the past three years.
- The new ‘The World’s First Fuel’ report reveals that, if Australia adopted leading international practices in energy efficiency, we could:
- Slash the energy bills of households and businesses by $7.7 billion a year;
- Create 120,000 extra jobs; and
- Meet over half of Australia’s commitment to reduce emissions by 26-28 per cent by 2030, and over a third of a more ambitious target to cut emissions by 50 per cent; and
- Support the transition to renewable energy and electric vehicles. Germany has adopted the principle ‘Energy Efficiency First’ as part of its transition to renewable energy, the Energiewende.
Major global economies, including China, Germany, India, Japan and the United States are making huge strides to improve their energy efficiency and adjust when they use energy – collectively called ‘energy management’.
Global private and public investment in energy efficiency was AU$346 billion in 2018. These efforts are delivering huge dividends, with energy efficiency:
- Reducing energy bills: Energy efficiency reduces German families’ energy bills by 30 per cent, saving the average household AU$790 each year.
- Ensuring energy security: After the 2011 Fukushima tsunami, energy management in Japan reduced peak demand by 19 per cent. By 2016 energy management had replaced 39 per cent of the output of 49 nuclear generators that had been closed after the disaster.
- Reducing emissions: Energy management has delivered by far the largest reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions this century.
- Creating economic growth and jobs: Energy efficiency improvements increased global GDP by an estimated AU$2.8 trillion in 2017. In California alone there are an estimated 310,433 jobs in energy efficiency.
