Energy Efficiency Committee

Vast savings in consumption through proposals by Energy Efficiency Committee

Determined energy saving and energy efficiency measures can achieve savings of 37 terawatt hours in final energy consumption by 2020. This can be achieved through 125 measures that the Energy Efficiency Committee, established by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, submitted to Mauri Pekkarinen, Minister of Economic Affairs, on 9 June 2009. Proposals in the Committee report cover all sectors of society, from trade and industry to private consumption.

Due to the proposed measures, final energy consumption will be approximately 11 per cent lower in 2020 than it would be without these measures. This target is in line with the Long-term Climate and Energy Strategy submitted by the Government to the Parliament in November 2008. The amount of energy saved would correspond to an approximate 9.3 million tonne decrease in carbon dioxide emissions. In the report, the Committee also presents its views on how energy consumption will decrease further, by one third, from the year 2020 to 2050. 

Radical change required throughout society – solid foundation for measures crucial

According to the Committee, these challenging targets cannot be achieved via single measures alone. Instead, radical change is called for throughout society - even in our ways of life, thinking and conduct. 

The Committee emphasises the significance of what it terms the foundation, comprising a number of issues and functions that must be in order in society, in order for these goals to be achieved. These measures form an extensive and wide-ranging basis for all activities, and upholding them is fundamental to striving towards the targets set for the year 2050.

Strongest measures up to 2020 – aggregate savings with impacts of 36.4 terawatt hours

The calculated energy saving impact of these measures totalled 36.4 terawatt hours, of which electricity savings accounted for 6.4 TWh. In addition, numerous important and impressive measures were suggested, for which precise quantitative savings effects cannot be calculated. These include measures related to changes in community structure, education, research and development, advisory services and communications.

The highest savings calculated would be achieved through new automotive technology (8.5 TWh), regulations for new building and renovation building (4.9 TWh), more challenging energy efficiency agreements (2.8 TWh), and energy performance requirements for appliances (2.1 TWh). Through these four sets of measures, all outside the emissions trading sector, one half of the savings target can be achieved. In energy-intensive industry, as a consequence of emissions trading and other measures, the estimated improvement in energy efficiency would be approximately 8 TWh in 2020. 

The main focus of the Committee’s work was in non-emissions trading sectors. Community structure, buildings, traffic, households and agriculture, industry and the public and private service sector came under review. 

The proposed measures represent normative control, economic steering methods, public information campaigns, education and expertise, research and development and other individual methods (e.g. energy efficiency agreements and energy audits). 

Energy efficiency measures will pay for themselves as early as 2020

Energy saving will cause investment costs early in the next decade, but once the savings impacts of various measures begin to materialise, energy saving will pay for itself by the end of the next decade. 

From the viewpoint of the national economy, in the assessment conducted, energy efficiency measures proved more profitable than in previous assessments, and the positive impacts of these measures will become evident sooner than previously calculated.

Targets and measures form the overall plan for energy saving and energy efficiency

The aim is that the Committee’s proposed measures, together with the goals for enhancing energy end-use efficiency and policies, as defined in the Government’s Long-term Climate and Energy Strategy, will form an overall plan for energy saving and energy efficiency.

According to this strategy, having received the Committee’s proposals and at the latest by the autumn of 2009, the Government will decide on any energy efficiency measures to be launched urgently, the organisation of the related activities and the targeting of the required financing. 

Energy Efficiency Committee broad-based and unanimous

The Chairperson of the widely representative Energy Efficiency Committee is Sirkka Vilkamo, Industrial Counsellor at the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, while the 31 Committee members and approximately 130 experts, who participated in the work, represent organisations from across society. The Committee report has the members’ unanimous backing.

The Committee appointed five subordinate divisions: buildings, traffic, households and industry and the service sector. The fifth division examined the organisation of state promotional measures. 

The report of the Energy Efficiency Committee – Proposal for energy saving and energy efficiency measures – 9 June 2009 (pdf) (192.5 KB)

Comprehensive proposal with appendices, is available (in Finnish only) on the Ministry of Employment and the Economy’s website at www.tem.fi > Energy > Reports and Papers on Energy Sector > Energy Efficiency and Energy Saving (publications) (please see the link on the right column).

Further information

Sirkka Vilkamo, Industrial Counsellor, Ministry of Employment and the Economy,
tel. +358 (0)10 606 4810 (Committee Chairperson)

Erkki Laitinen, Building Counsellor, Ministry of the Environment,
tel. +358 (0)50 369 6790 (buildings)

Saara Jääskeläinen, Senior Adviser, Ministry of Transport and Communications,
tel. +358 (0)9 1602 8560 (traffic)

Pentti Puhakka, Senior Engineer, Ministry of Employment and the Economy,
tel. +358 (0)10 606 4813 (households)

Mikko Ylhäisi, Chief Technology Adviser, Tekes,
tel. +358 (0)10 605 5877 (industry and the service sector)

Veli-Pekka Reskola, Senior Adviser, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry,
tel. +358 (0)9 1605 3396 (agriculture)

Päivi Laitila, Chief Adviser, Motiva,
tel. +358 (0)42 428 1212 (Expert Secretary to the Committee)