Industrial decarbonization by a new energy-baseline methodology. Case study

Abstract

The main target of climate change policies in the majority of industrialized countries is to reduce energy consumption in their facilities, which would reduce the carbon emissions that are generated. Through this idea, energy management plans are developed, energy reduction targets are established, and energy-efficient technologies are applied to achieve high energy savings, which are environmentally compatible. In order to evaluate the impact of their operations and investments, companies promote measures of performance in their energy management plans. An integral part of measuring energy performance is the establishment of energy baselines applicable to the complete facility that provide a basis for evaluating energy efficiency improvements and incorporating energy performance indicators. The implementation of energy management systems in accordance with the requirements of ISO Standard 50001 is a contribution to the aim and strategies for improving cleaner production in industries. This involves an option for the industry to establish energy benchmarks to evaluate performance, predict energy consumption, and align production with the lowest possible consumption of primary and secondary forms of energy. Ultimately, this goal should lead to the manufacturing of cleaner products that are environmentally friendly, energy efficient, and are in accordance with the global environmental targets of cleaner manufacturing. This paper discusses an alternative for establishing energy baselines for the industrial sector in which several products are produced from a single raw material, and we determined the energy consumption of each product and its impact on the overall efficiency of the industry at the same time. The method is applied to the plastic injection process and the result is an energy baseline (EBL) in accordance with the requirements of ISO 50001, which serves as a reference for determining energy savings. The EBL facilitates a reduction in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in sectors such as plastics, a sector which accounts for 15% of Colombia’s manufacturing GDP.