CO₂ emissions substantially lowered
The trend in CO₂ intensity is gratifying. There were savings of roughly 400 000 tonnes of CO₂ by the end of 2016 thanks to measures implemented since 2013. The figure was 117 307 tonnes for the year 2016 alone. Based on recorded emissions of 4.1 million tonnes of CO₂ (fuels), current CO₂ intensity is 91.2 per cent. The target of 91.6 per cent for 2022 has already been achieved. In this period too, the business sector contribution to climate protection will again outperform the guidance set by the Confederation.
Strong mid-term performance
The year 2016 marks the half-way point in the current period. At present, the target-performance comparison is similar to that for the first period. The figures are slightly lower. This is because substitution measures such as the change-over from oil to gas or from fossil fuels to wood or biogas can only be done once, or because connection to a district heating network can no longer be taken into account during this period. The marked decline in the actual intensity figure is a success, especially bearing in mind that the economy posted real growth of five per cent between 2012 and 2016.
Steadily increasing energy efficiency
The trend in energy efficiency is also highly gratifying when we look at all models and energy sources. Compared to 2013, participants had raised their energy efficiency by seven per cent up to the end of 2016. This actual performance figure already matches the target figure for 2022. Especially noteworthy is the biggest growth recorded to date in the impact of measures in a single year. The measures implemented in 2016 alone for electricity and heat are helping to boost energy efficiency by more than 680,000 megawatt hours. The basis of the efficiency increase lies in energy consumption levels recorded in target agreements at end-2016, of over 14 million megawatt hours of electricity and almost 22 million megawatt hours of heat.
Enormous electricity savings
More than 200 000 additional megawatt hours of electricity were saved in 2016. This corresponds to the power consumption of 40 000 households. In terms of electricity, the total impact of measures at the end of 2016 was over 700 000 megawatt hours. When this is added to the impact of measures taken during the first period – 1.3 million megawatt hours – enterprises are saving a substantial amount of electricity through the measures-based implementation of target agreements. In sum, the amount is the same as that of subsidized renewable energies in 2015 or the output of the Beznau 2 nuclear power plant.
Impressive performances by SMEs
The SME model shows considerable successes. A comparison of the trend in CO₂ intensity for SMEs with that for all target agreements shows appreciably higher CO₂ savings by SMEs, which already have a CO₂ intensity of 86.4 per cent compared to the overall result of 91.2 per cent. This reflects the high degree of motivation on the part of SMEs to tackle energy management in the enterprise through an action target, with EnAW support.
Strong performances by energy-intensive entities
Measures taken by energy-intensive enterprises too have had a major impact. Since 2015, their CO₂ intensity has fallen from 93.5 to 91.3 per cent, and their energy efficiency has risen from 104.2 to 106.0 per cent. In terms of size and number, their absolute figures are impressive: In 2016 alone, the over 2 700 enterprises saved more than 110 000 tonnes of CO₂ and 217 000 MWh of electricity through additional measures.
Vehicle and transport efficiency programme gains momentum
The vehicle and transport efficiency programme yielded a slight increase in additional CO₂ savings in 2016. The impact of measures was 145 tonnes of CO₂ in the electric trucks programme and 9 468 tonnes of CO₂ through the shift from road to rail transport.