How can the "sleeping giant" of energy efficiency be awakened? What steps need to be taken for the EU to meet its own target of a 20% increase in energy efficiency by 2020?  What can the EU Energy Efficiency Directive, proposed in June 2011 by the European Commission, contribute to reaching this goal? In order to answer these and other questions, Ecologic Institute organized an international workshop at the behest of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety.

This workshop took place on 9 November 2011 at the Permanent Representation of the Federal Republic of Germany to the European Union in Brussels and was put together with support from energiewaechter GmbH. Energy efficiency’s potential contribution to climate change mitigation was the emphasis of the event. The event organizers were able to welcome 80 participants from EU institutions as well as businesses, political circles, and organizations of the various Member States.

The goal of the workshop was to generate a discussion about the political and legal framework of the EU’s energy efficiency policy, including the directive proposal of the EU Commission. The proposal’s potential effects on current energy efficiency measures in Member States were analyzed. Additionally, experiences with the implementation of energy efficiency policies and measures by Members States and by the private sector were elaborated and exchanged, including presentations about successful implementation of energy saving obligations and energy saving contracting schemes.

The schedule can be downloaded here [pdf, 1.3 MB, English]. The individual presentations and a comprehensive documentation of the event are also available here for download:

Presentations:

• Climate Protection and energy efficiency in Poland: the impact of White
  Certificates [pdf, 1.3 MB, English] by Prof. Krzystof Zmijewski, Public Board of the National Program for Reduction of Emissions Warsaw
• Energy efficiency and climate protection in Germany: Roadmap for a
  sustainable energy future [pdf, 612 kB, English] by Franzjosef Schafhausen, BMU
• Energy Efficiency Scenarios 2020 and beyond in the EU and EU Member
  States [pdf, 800 KB, English] by Dr. Wolfgang Eichhammer/Tobias Boßmann, Fraunhofer ISI
• Energy performance contracting – the smart financial tool for climate
  protection [pdf, 163 kB, English] by Hans-Lothar Schäfer, Techem GmbH
• RE:FIT: Building Energy Efficiency for cities of tomorrow – a novel
  London initiative [pdf, 1.3 MB, English] by Virginie Caujolle-Pradenc, Greater London Authority
• Energy Saving Partnership Berlin [pdf, 1.1 MB, English] by Susanne Berger, Berliner Energieagentur GmbH
• Energy Services: Success by Regional Action [pdf, 2.2 MB, English] by Stephan von Hundelshausen, ESCO-Forum
• Energy efficiency as a viable business model for local energy providers [pdf, 935 kB, English] by Alexander Klötzel, Trianel GmbH
• UK utilities’ saving obligations and their impact [pdf, 440 kB, English] by Frances Williamson, UK Energy Retail Association
• Energy Saving Obligations in Denmark [pdf, 413 kB, English] by Peter Bach, Danish Energy Agency
• Workshop Documentation [pdf, 500 kB, English]