20 Billion To Improve Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency has yet to see a period in history more open to its products than now, thanks to a convergence of events: rising energy prices, concerns about climate change, and a desire to reduce use of petroleum products and promote clean energy. Several nations have set double digit goals to reduce their energy use and are backing plans with sizable government investment.
US President Barack Obama allotted $20 billion for energy efficiency as part of the nation’s federal stimulus package and set a target for the nation to reduce electricity use 20% by 2020. China, the world’s second largest electricity consumer, also has set aggressive efficiency goals.
The nation in recent years built power plants at a rate of about 90 GW per year, nearly as much power as Germany has installed in total. In search of more cost effective, less polluting measures, China has set a goal to no more than double energy use by 2020.
In addition, China and the US in late 2009 agreed to collaborate on building an energy efficiency industry. This is a significant step considering that together the two nations consume 40% of the world’s energy, so can achieve considerable economies in manufacturing energy efficiency equipment. Meanwhile, the European Union has set a target to reduce annual consumption of primary fuels 20% by 2020.
Still, the energy efficiency sector faces some obstructions, chief among them a reticence by consumers and businesses to adopt its products. New, smart technologies are expected to draw the consumer toward energy efficiency pursuits in the near future, as are plug-in electric cars that offer a possible revenue source to their owners.
In other cases, technologies will be installed in power plants and transmission systems that energy consumers never see, yet benefit from. Thus in a recessionary economic period when many industries are waning, the energy efficiency industry appears to be on a strong, upward trajectory worldwide.