Ireland plans to launch an energy
efficiency fund in order to help pull themselves out of their current economic
recession. With this fund the government
will be investing USD 45 million and will help reduce their energy consumption
by 20%. Irish Energy Minister Pat
Rabbitte stated that this fund would “dramatically improve energy efficiency
savings in public and commercial buildings across the country.” He went on to say that there would be a
“significant win in terms of jobs and energy savings by placing an increased
focus on energy saving in the public and commercial sectors.” Rabbitte also said that this fund would
trigger large investments. These
investments match private sector investments to a minimum Fund value and the
lending is set to being this year.
The biggest aspect of the EFF
besides taking strain off of the economy is that it will create an array of
jobs, up to 675 for every 10 million euro of expenditure according to the
article. Rabbitte went on to say that while taking a 2.4 billion euro energy
burden out of the economy that will be felt by the entire country energy
suppliers must increase their efforts and play their part in making energy
affordable and available in a wider range of services to customers. Dr. Motherway, CEO of SEAI, also stated
that this plan for energy efficiency is meant to stop spending and relying on
energy from abroad and focusing on local sources of energy. He went on to say that this fund is a
“great opportunity to create jobs, keep business competitive, and bring social
and environmental benefits. “
As stated by Motherway the EFF is
attempting to switch focus form international to local productions of
energy. It is emphasized in this
article that cooperation from all those involved is a key to the success of
this project. This being the
second of Irelands National Energy Efficiency Action Plans shows that Ireland
is making a huge effort to create an energy efficient society. It will be interesting to see how these
investments go, what kinds of jobs are developed through the fund, what energy
efficient systems are set into place, and how well it pulls the Irish economy
out of its recession.
http://theenergycollective.com/claretaylor/194646/ireland-launches-energy-efficiency-fund
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