Global emissions of carbon dioxide from industry can be reduced by five per cent.
Global emissions of carbon dioxide from industry can be reduced by five per cent. But that requires companies and policy makers to take a holistic approach to energy efficiency and energy management and not solely focus on technological development. This is the conclusion of researchers, including from Linköping University, in the journal Nature Communications.
“We have a far too narrow view of energy efficiency. Many people think that investments in new energy-efficient equipment are enough. But then you can’t fulfil the full potential of energy efficiency,” says Patrik Thollander, Professor in Energy Systems at Linköping University.
Together with colleagues at the University of Gävle, Stockholm Resilience Centre, Lund University, Uppsala University and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, he has analysed what would be required for industries to be able to minimise their energy use.
The concept of energy efficiency emerged as a necessity in the oil crisis of the early 1970s. Then, energy prices skyrocketed, and energy efficiency measures were taken to reduce the cost to companies. Now, with an accelerating climate crisis, this is necessary to reduce emissions of fossil carbon dioxide. Both the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the European Commission think that energy efficiency is the first measure to take and a cornerstone for achieving climate neutrality. However, according to the researchers, there is considerable potential in energy efficiency that remains untapped.
Read more at Linköping University
Image: Patrik Thollander, Professor in Energy Systems at Linköping University. (Credit: Teiksma Buseva)
