Ajay Bhagat
Energy consumption across all the sectors has increased in the past few years and with rapid urbanization it is expected to increase further in the coming years. As energy has always been recognized as one of the most important inputs to determine the economic growth of a country, it is prudent to design several policies to curb the unnecessary energy consumption across all the sectors. Hence, in the last few years, the Government of India has launched several schemes/programmes for various sectors to manage the excessive energy consumption.
India’s efforts to bring efficiency in the energy sector, which has fossil fuel as a key element, received a significant boost when ADB approved a sector loan in 2019, with co-financing from the Clean Technology Fund and Global Environment Fund. The Scaling Up Demand-Side Energy Efficiency Sector Project was designed to help scale up energy-efficient technologies through innovative business models that help reduce energy intensity.
The erstwhile Department of Power, GoI, which was under the Ministry of Irrigation and Power, was responsible about energy conservation in its power generating stations. However, once the potential for energy efficiency and conservation in the end use of energy was recognized, a holistic and systematic view was taken and accordingly Energy Conservation Act (EC Act) was enacted. The EC Act 2001, which provides for the efficient use of energy and its conservation and for matters Energy efficiency provides considerable potential to promote low carbon transformation in the Indian context. India had realized this importance of energy optimization long back, evident from the launch of the Energy Conservation Act in 2001 and amended in 2010. It had further directed its policies to focus specifically on energy efficiency by setting up the Bureau of Energy efficiency (BEE) and then initiating National Mission for Enhanced Energy efficiency (NMEEE).
Under the provisions of the Act, BEE has been established with effect from 1 March 2002 by merging into it, the erstwhile Energy Management Centre – a registered society under the Ministry of Power. Working to achieve its objective, BEE has recommended the central government to initiate several schemes to conserve energy and promote energy efficiency in the country.
With buildings, industries, and transport accounting for over 94% of global energy consumption, targeted interventions in these sectors are crucial. Countries such as the United States, India, Germany, and many nations in the Middle East are demonstrating how energy efficiency can be transformed from an ideal into measurable progress. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, energy efficiency initiatives in the building sector have collectively saved $18.5 billion and reduced carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 190 million metric tons since 2011.
Germany has long been a global leader in energy efficiency, integrating policies into its energy transition strategy. The National Action Plan on Energy Efficiency drives savings through financial incentives, energy audits, and collaborative industry networks. Meanwhile, Germany’s Building Energy Act sets strict standards for insulation, heating, and renewable energy integration, ensuring both environmental benefits and cost savings for property owners. Germany’s efficiency programs have resulted in primary energy savings of about 100 TWh annually, significantly reducing CO2 emissions.
India’s approach to energy efficiency combines regulatory action with market-driven innovations. The Perform, Achieve, and Trade (PAT) scheme notifies specific energy reduction targets for industries and enables the trading of Energy Saving Certificates (ESCerts). PAT scheme resulted in annual energy savings of approximately 17 million tonnes of oil equivalent and mitigation of 87 million tonnes CO2 annually across 13 energy intensive sectors. Industries such as Thermal Power, Petroleum Refineries, Iron & Steel, Cement, Aluminium, Fertilize, Chlor-Alkali, and Textile have recognized that investing in energy efficiency measures is critical to achieve energy transition.
Perform, Achieve and Trade Scheme (PAT) is an innovative market based mechanism which has been developed to enhance the energy efficiency in energy intensive industries through issuance of tradable energy saving certificates. The scheme was announced under the National Mission on Enhanced Energy efficiency (NMEEE) in the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC). The scheme targets the Designated Consumers (DCs) which are industrial units from energy intensive industrial sectors identified in the EC Act 2001. Under this scheme, certain targets are provided to Designated Consumers (DCs) to reduce their specific energy consumption. These targets are plant specific, wherein targets are lower for energy efficient and higher for inefficient plants. The DCs which surpass targets are issued Energy Savings Certificates (ESCerts) with 1TOE savings being equal to 1ESCert. DCs, to whom the ESCerts are issued, can sell them at Power exchanges to other DCs which are unable to reach their energy reduction targets or can be utilized for compliance of their next cycle. Participation in the scheme is mandatory for Designated Consumers under the EC Act 2001. The Government notified the mandatory Energy Audit vide S.O 1378 (E) dated 27th May, 2014 for the Designated Consumers to help in identifying various energy saving opportunities in energy intensive industries & other establishments. Any DC not complying with the stipulations of the PAT scheme is liable to be penalized as per section 26 of EC Act.
State Designated Agency (SDA): SDAs are statutory bodies’ setup at state level to implement the activities of the EC Act under the overall supervision and guidance of BEE. They are the nodal agencies at state level and need to coordinate with BEE to ensure a smooth and speedy implementation of the Act across the country. Specifically for PAT scheme, SDAs gather, monitor and analyses data reported by DCs, enable tracking, monitoring and reporting energy reduction details.
Energy needs to be conserved to cut costs and to preserve the sources for longer use, moreover, the reasons people conserve energy are to gain more control over their energy bill and reduce the demand on the earth’s natural resources. As in whole India Energy Conservation Act is implemented for more than decades ago but in Jammu Kashmir the same could not be implemented till date due to several reasons better known to previous governments/officials. So, it is more important to implement the Act in J&K as soon as possible so that energy conservation / management benefit the union territory to its all types of consumers. That’s why the topic itself is self explanatory, Energy Efficiency – unseen catalyst in Jammu & Kashmir.
(The author is Assistant Engineer JKPDD)
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