Global Guide Energy Efficiency Networks - Germany's Policy Instrument Design, Impacts and Success Factors
Keywords: Industrial Decarbonisation, Australia, Germany, Energy Efficiency, Energy Efficiency Networks, Global Guide | Study published: August 2024
Energy Efficiency Networks have established themselves as a policy instrument for acceleration and multiplication of energy efficiency in industrial and other companies. First used in Switzerland in the 1980s, it is now Germany that has featured them most prominently in its national climate protection strategy. Already in its second phase, its Initiative Energy Efficiency and Climate Protection Networks counts over 400 participating networks with 2,500 companies and 10,000 measures implemented. This Global Guide gathers the insights from the Initiative. It explains its place in Germany's economic, political and regulatory context, the concept and history of energy efficiency networks, presents its impacts, success factors and lessons learned, and finally considers its transferability to other jurisdictions.
The guide's authors, adelphi and Fraunhofer ISI, have been tasked with monitoring the initiative since 2017.
Energy efficiency networks are a success story delivering measurable benefits for the participating companies.
- The German Initiative for Energy Efficiency Networks has demonstrated how a voluntary agreement can have an impressive impact on energy efficiency in the industrial sector. Valuable insights can be gleamed from that experience.
- Favourable framework conditions need to be created at the three levels of design, implementation and evaluation.
- In order to achieve a large impact, it is necessary to adapt the network concept to the respective local context.
The study is a result of the Climate and Energy Partnership
