Kirit Parikh for energy audits, benchmarking in the energy sector

Mumbai, Feb 23 (UNI) Energy audits, benchmarking and setting standards for appliances are essential steps to ensure energy efficiency and demand side management, Dr Kirit Parikh, Member, Planning Commission, Government of India here said.

Inaugurating the two-day CII ENCON 2007 here last evening, he said that energy audits, benchmarking and setting standards for appliances are essential steps to ensure energy efficiency and demand side management. Setting standards may seem forced but it is required, he added.

Declaring that energy conservation requires awareness, incentives, skills and policy framework, Dr Parikh also advocated the use of incentives and innovative financing programmes to promote the concept among manufacturers. Some of the other steps recommended by him includes establishing and enforcing vigorous energy efficiency and conservation programmes and standards and revising the National Building Codes to facilitate and encourage energy efficient buildings.

Also, he stressed the need for strengthening the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), making it autonomous and merging the Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) with it. He pointed out how the process could go beyond BEE by implementing super critical boilers in coal power plants, increasing the share of railways in freight movement by matching quality of service with trucks, emphasizing on urban mass transport and ensuring lifetime cost based purchase by Government.

S Padmanabhan, Senior Advisor, USAID explained the prevailing trends in the International Energy Conservation Scenario. According to him, the greatest advances came from vendors and the industrial sector did better than its commercial counterpart. Most government programs faired poorly with important exceptions being standards and information programs. He underlined the fact that energy building conservation codes were enacted but widely ignored. The best results, he said, were obtained when public policy mechanisms were teamed with business policy.

In his keynote address, Jamshyd N Godrej, Chairman&Managing Director, Godrej &Boyce Manufacturing Co Ltd, highlighted the recently launched 'CII Code for Ecologically Sustainable Business Growth'. We are trying to address the highly energy intensive and resource intensive industries. There has been a very good response and we should sign up 100 companies by April, he informed.

Dr Naushad Forbes, Chairman, Encon 2007&Director, Forbes Marshall Pvt Ltd, emphasized on the need for more awareness about energy conservation among top management. The first step in achieving a lot is to want to achieve a lot and set higher goals, he said.

UNI