Initiatives for Energy Efficiency in India

• The Ministry of Power is implementing measures to save energy with an objective to reduce  CO2 emission levels in the environment from industries, establishments and by using equipment/ appliances.
• In this regard, Perform Achieve and Trade (PAT) Scheme is a key programme for large industries and establishments.

Perform Achieve and Trade (PAT) Scheme

• This scheme aims to enhance the cost-effectiveness of energy savings by upgrading technologies or by taking in-house actions to minimize energy consumption.
• The scheme provides mandatory targets for the identified Large Units and the excess energy saved by them is issued as Energy Saving Certificate, which are tradable instruments.
• The different industries and establishments are assigned separate energy efficiency targets based on their levels of energy consumption and the potential for energy savings.
• By the year 2020, the scheme coverage has been extended to the 13 most energy-intensive sectors in the country including Cement, Iron and Steel, Fertilizer, Thermal Power Plants, Refineries, Petrochemicals, and Railways and others.
• This initiative is currently leading to energy savings of about 17 MTOE (Million Tonnes of Oil Equivalent) and has resulted in mitigation of about 87 million tonnes of CO2, per year, a figure close to the total CO2 emissions of countries like Bangladesh.

Standards and Labeling (S&L) Program

Appliances are the main points for electricity consumption at the household level or at office and commercial establishments. In view of the rapid growth in high-energy consumer goods, the demand for electrical energy has been increasing every year. This rising demand can be optimized, if the consumers prefer high-efficiency appliances.

• To enable the market transformation of efficient products, the Standards and Labeling (S&L) Program was introduced by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE).
• The objective of S&L is to provide the consumers, an informed choice about the energy savings potential and thereby the cost saving due to the products available in the market.
• The scheme includes a display of energy performance labels on key energy-consuming equipment & appliances, with stipulations for minimum energy performance standards.
• The scheme has now included 28 appliances till March 2021 and over 15000 models of energy-efficient products have been awarded Star labels, a popular symbol among the consumers for endorsing energy savings.
• The impact of using a huge number of efficient products by the citizens has resulted in an estimated electricity savings of 56 Billion Units during 2020-21, worth over Rs. 30000 crores.
• This initiative has been effective in reducing the CO2 emissions of approx. 46 Million Tonnes every year.
• Such steps have become very effective and a simplified approach is considered more useful to promote energy efficiency globally.
• Many countries have followed this labelling programme, thereby reaping the benefits of energy savings and also in reducing CO2 emissions.

About Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)

• The Government of India has set up the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) on 1st March 2002 under the provision of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
• The mission of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency is to assist in developing policies and strategies with a thrust on self-regulation and market principles with the primary objective of reducing the energy intensity of the Indian economy within the overall framework of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
• This will be achieved with active participation and collaboration of all stakeholders, resulting in accelerated and sustained adoption of energy efficiency in all sectors.
• BEE’s span of Energy Conservation and Efficiency efforts covers areas such as appliances, Buildings, Transport, key Demand Side Management programs in Agriculture and Municipalities and the Industry and other Establishments.

What is the news?

The initiatives launched today on Aiming for Sustainable Habitat: New Initiatives in Building Energy Efficiency 2021 included:

• Specifying code compliance approaches and minimum energy performance requirements for building services, and verification framework with Eco Niwas Samhita 2021.
• The web-based platform ‘The Handbook of Replicable Designs for Energy Efficient Residential Buildings’ as a learning tool, which can be used to create a pool of ready-to-use resources of replicable designs to construct energy-efficient homes in India.
• Creating an Online Directory of Building Materials that would envisage the process of establishing Standards for energy-efficient building materials.
• Announcement of NEERMAN Awards, (National Energy Efficiency Roadmap for Movement towards Affordable & Natural Habitat), with the goal of encouraging exceptionally efficient building designs complying with BEE’s Energy Conservation Building Codes.
• Online Star Rating tool for Energy Efficient Homes created to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption in individual homes. It provides performance analysis to help professionals decide the best options to pick for energy efficiency of their homes.
• Training of over 15,000 Architects, Engineers and Government officials on Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) 2017 and Eco Niwas Samhita (ENS) 2021).