According to a new whitepaper written by State of Green, in collaboration with Danfoss, the globe may fall short of net-zero targets without energy efficiency improvements.
“In the dialogue around the energy crisis and the green transition, energy efficiency is often politically overlooked,” said Mikkel Ballegaard, from Danfoss. “One reason is that energy efficiency is not as tangible as renewable energy technology. Another reason is that we have fallen short of adequately explaining the enormous potential in energy efficiency and the critical role it must play to reach the full electrification of our society. In June this year, one of the most significant ministerial gatherings focusing solely on energy efficiency took place, when representatives from 27 governments attended the IEA’s Annual Global Conference on Energy Efficiency in Sønderborg, Denmark. This whitepaper builds on the strong statement agreed at the conference and the analysis ‘The value of urgent action on energy efficiency’, published by the IEA at the conference.”
Among the key takeaways from the white paper includes the growth of energy demand. Without urgent action, energy demand will grow significantly, getting us off track to meet global climate goals. Instead, according to IEA a collective push for energy efficiency can deliver one-third of the total emissions reductions needed to reach net zero.
Energy efficiency is an enabler of electrification. To grow the role of electricity in the energy mix it is a fundamental, yet overlooked, fact that we need to reduce energy demand first. An early analysis found that for every dollar spent on energy efficiency, we can avoid spending more than two dollars on energy supply.
Cooling is also a global blind spot in climate change mitigation. As economies grow and adapt to a warmer climate, especially in the Global South, demand for cooling will make the second-largest contribution to the overall rise in global electricity demand over the coming decades.
Finally, the whitepaper argues that most of the global reductions in carbon emissions through 2030 needed for net zero come from technologies readily available today. The paper presents concrete policy measures to increase energy efficiency across sectors.
