Energy diagnosis in the industry

Energy efficiency and energy transition are the terms most recently cited to encompass the ever-present reality of optimizing energy resources, ensuring security of supply and saving energy.

Thanks to policies implemented over several decades, France's energy consumption of 3.9 kWh/capita is in line with the European average (benchmark 2019).

Since the first oil crisis in 1973, successive French governments have introduced energy-saving measures to influence the energy choices and behavior of the French people and businesses. The primary objective was to reduce France's dependence on petroleum products by switching to other energy sources (mainly gas), and to cut energy consumption and consequently the national energy bill. The follow-up to this objective was quantified by the reduction in France's energy intensity.

With few internal energy resources, France's energy bill weighs heavily in the import/export balance, despite its declared energy independence rate of over 50%, thanks to nuclear power.

It's vital that companies play their part in the national drive to improve energy efficiency. To do this, they need to know their energy situation before making any decisions about energy choices, so that they are aware of all the useful data and all the possibilities for improving their energy management.

The development of a methodical analysis approach leading to energy-saving recommendations, the energy diagnostic, became essential and was deployed, bringing beneficial results to enlighten and guide the energy choices of decision-makers. The resulting actions and investments have primarily reduced the energy bills of companies that have taken this approach.

An industrial company's energy diagnostic involves drawing up an energy balance sheet and an energy performance indicator, and studying how these can be improved in order to propose energy-saving recommendations and solutions leading to an action plan.

The terms "diagnosis" and "energy audit" can be used interchangeably, although it should be borne in mind that, for some industrial specialists, the former represents a more in-depth approach and content than the latter.

The recommendations involve not only technical achievements, but also changes in the behavior of energy equipment users, and their study must include a technical-economic analysis.

There are several methods for carrying out an energy audit. The two most widely used are those covered by standards, and are presented in this article.

To produce an energy balance sheet and an action plan to improve a company's energy performance, the process begins with...