Study 45 – The non-energy benefits of energy efficiency investments

Energy efficiency is a key driver of industrial decarbonisation, but investment remains insufficient to meet emissions reduction targets.

This situation can be partly explained by an incomplete assessment of projects, which is often limited solely to energy savings and reductions in CO₂ emissions, without taking into account their contribution to industrial performance and competitiveness.

However, energy efficiency projects also generate numerous non-energy benefits (NEBs) — such as reduced maintenance costs, improved productivity or comfort — which are still rarely factored into investment decisions, due to a lack of data, suitable methods and the expertise required to quantify them.

Against this backdrop, the study carried out by ALLICE aims to raise awareness of BNE amongst its members and to identify the barriers and drivers to its integration into investment decisions.

The study will focus on identifying and characterising BNE, applying the MBENEFITS methodology to two real-world industrial cases (Cooperl and Thyssenkrupp), and formulating best practices and recommendations to better capitalise on these benefits in energy efficiency projects.