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Energy efficiency networks—what are the processes that make them work?

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Abstract

Energy efficiency networks have received increasing attention over the last few years, not only from national governments (Austria, China, Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland) but also from utilities, consulting engineers, chambers of commerce, and city councils. This paper examines the factors that contribute to the success of such networks by drawing on unique data from two pilot projects involving 34 energy efficiency networks in Germany. The objective is to explain why the companies participating in such networks are much faster at reducing their energy costs than the average in similar businesses. Possible explanations for the success of energy efficiency networks include the following: (1) energy audits make profitable potentials visible; (2) the joint network targets for efficiency and emissions increase the motivation of energy managers, decision-makers, and other staff members; (3) the meetings and site visits of the network participants act like an intensive training course to increase the knowledge of efficient solutions, change decision routines, and lead to trust among the participants; and (4) network participation reduces transaction costs. In our data, we find support for the first, the third, and the fourth explanations, i.e. the audits make profitable potentials visible and networks function as a training course to increase knowledge. And, from the point of view of participants, transaction costs are reduced. The impact of network goals, on the other hand, appears to have both up- and downsides. We conclude that there is the need for further research in order to capture these mechanisms in more detail.

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Notes

  1. However, they may also run for much longer depending on political framework conditions, e.g. in Switzerland, companies commit themselves to 10-year targets as part of CO2 legislation.

  2. See http://www.30pilot-netzwerke.de/archiv/nw-de/downloads/Foerderbekanntmachung-.pdf_%3b for the details (in German), last accessed 12/11/2017.

  3. For a detailed comparison of the concepts in German, see https://www.energie-effizienz-netzwerke.de/een-wAssets/docs/Vergleich-LEEN-und-Marie.pdf, last accessed 17/03/2017.

  4. An internal rate of return of 12% was determined as the profitability limit in both pilot projects, meaning that all measures with an IRR above 12% were considered profitable by the organisations and suggested for implementation.

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Funding

The pilot phase of the energy efficiency networks complying with the LEEN standard as well as the work on this paper were funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (grant nos. 03KS0036 and 03KE000361A).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovations Research ISI, Competence Center Energy Technology and Energy Systems, Breslauer Straße 48, D-76139, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Elisabeth Dütschke, Simon Hirzel & Ursula Mielicke

  2. Institut für Ressourceneffizienz IREES, Schönfeldstraße 8, D-76131, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Farikha Idrissova, Michael Mai & Ursula Mielicke

  3. Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS), Karlstraße 11, D-76133, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Lisa Nabitz

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  1. Elisabeth Dütschke
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  2. Simon Hirzel
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  4. Michael Mai
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Correspondence to Elisabeth Dütschke.

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Dütschke, E., Hirzel, S., Idrissova, F. et al. Energy efficiency networks—what are the processes that make them work?. Energy Efficiency 11, 1177–1192 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12053-017-9606-4

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