Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan will attend a meeting with the European Commission to discuss ways to tackle the surge in energy prices tomorrow (Friday, September 9).
Along with other EU energy ministers, Minister Ryan will discuss measures proposed by the European Commission to reduce energy costs, including the introduction of a cap on the price of Russian gas.
The EU’s proposals include electricity savings, a cap on the revenues of companies producing electricity with low costs, and the imposition of a solidarity contribution on oil and gas companies.
Due to scarce global energy supply, a smart reduction in demand and a strategy to flatten the peaks which drive the price of electricity is needed, the president of the commission, Ursula von der Leyen said.
“We will propose a mandatory target for reducing electricity use at peak hours, and a cap on revenues of companies producing electricity with low costs. Low carbon energy sources are making unexpected revenues, which do not reflect their production costs.
“It is now time for consumers to benefit from the low costs of low carbon energy sources, like renewables,” she added.
The Cabinet approved a suite of energy-efficiency measures across the Irish public sector yesterday (Wednesday, September 7), which is the first in a series of actions expected over the coming weeks.
All public sector bodies will, from September, take a leading role in lowering their energy consumption and costs, according to the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC).
Significant measures will also be introduced in Budget 2023 to ensure that households and businesses receive help to meet their rising energy costs, according to Minister Ryan and the DECC.
Energy use in public sector
The reduction of energy use across the public sector is a first step in the new autumn Reduce Your Use campaign which is designed to target reductions in energy use.
Measures to achieve these reductions outlined by the DECC include:
- Reducing the temperature and duration of heating systems;
- Reducing energy use from lighting;
- Reducing electricity use at peaks times whenever possible;
- Making more efficient use of buildings where occupancy is low, at certain times, due to remote working.
Bodies in the public sector will be required to set temperatures to 19° where appropriate, to turn off heat in office buildings at least 1-2 hours before the buildings closes, and to ensure that there is no non-security or safety lighting in use after 8:00p.m.
The DECC expects that the Reduce Your Use energy campaign can deliver 5-10% energy savings overall across the sector, and up to 15% in buildings.
“In 2020, the public sector achieved its ambitious target to attain a 33% energy efficiency improvement, compared to an overall economy target of 20%. There will now be a concerted effort across the public sector to continue this leadership role in reducing energy use,” the DECC said.