Young Energy Europe
Identification of energy efficiency potential in European companies through the training of young professionals. These “Energy Scouts” are trained to develop and implement tailor-made energy and resource efficiency projects in their companies. In this way, they not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions in their companies, but also reduce energy costs at the same time.
Economy Energy Efficiency Sustainable Economy
Project info
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia
04/24 - 03/27
Private sector, Civil society
2,479,419.82 €
Contact info
Max Junghanns
- Deutsch-Kroatische Industrie- und Handelskammer (AHK Kroatien)
- Deutsch-Polnische Industrie- und Handelskammer (AHK Polen)
- Deutsch-Serbische Wirtschaftskammer (AHK Serbien)
- German Baltic Chamber of Commerce in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (AHK Baltic)
- German-Slovak Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AHK Slovakia)
Background
As part of the European Green Deal, the transformation of the energy system in conjunction with measures to increase energy efficiency in the EU has come into clear focus in recent years. In May 2022, the REPowerEU plan for more energy savings, the diversification of energy supplies, and the accelerated expansion of renewable energies as a replacement for fossil fuels was launched. In addition, the Energy Efficiency Directive adopted in July 2023 sets the legally binding target of an 11.7% reduction in final energy consumption by 2030 compared to the reference year 2020. Energy efficiency measures and energy savings in companies are particularly worthwhile in countries with high energy costs, while at the same time, many countries in Central and Eastern Europe have historically been characterized by low energy costs. Investments such as switching to LED lighting, optimizing a compressed air system, or installing a PV system on the company roof must therefore be well planned, calculated, and justified.
The project motivates companies to support the achievement of the goals of European climate and energy policy with concrete measures. Energy Scouts strengthen climate protection in companies by focusing on more efficient production processes, the switch to clean energy sources, and the economical and careful use of raw materials and resources. The transfer of know-how by Young Energy Europe is a building block on the way to the long-term goal of a climate-neutral European economy.
Project
Young Energy Europe is currently training specialists from a wide range of sectors in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, and North Macedonia to become Energy Scouts. The core of Young Energy Europe’s work is to use a bottom-up process to identify and exploit energy efficiency potential in European companies. The Energy Scouts will uncover customized energy and resource efficiency potential in their companies and implement it in a practical project. They initiate change processes and use a concrete and monetarily measurable project concept to underline the YEE core message: “Climate protection pays off for companies.” Together with the local bilateral chambers of commerce abroad (AHKs), practical lecturers demonstrate proven energy efficiency approaches and strengthen individual solutions – tailored to the needs and possibilities of the companies. Energy Scouts learn how to analyze energy consumption in their company and develop practical projects as a team to reduce energy and resource consumption. Energy Scouts are skilled at identifying individual project approaches with high savings potential and driving forward the implementation of efficiency projects. Finally, the Energy Scout teams of each year pitch their project to the public, and an expert jury awards prizes to the best energy-saving projects. Subsequently, the majority of the energy-saving projects are implemented independently and promptly in the companies, with participants and companies benefiting equally from the program: companies can use the professional expertise of their employees to become more sustainable and save costs. The young professionals benefit both personally and professionally from the development and introduction of new ideas and solutions for their companies.
Young Energy Europe’s Milestones
The project, developed within the framework of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), was first adapted at the end of 2017 by the project subsidiary DIHK Service GmbH for the EUKI of the then Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). In four Eastern European target countries of the EUKI – Hungary, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, and Greece – the qualification was funded and implemented in cooperation with the local German AHKs with a contract volume of €2,692,426. From November 2021 to March 2024, the qualification was introduced in four additional European countries: Poland, Slovakia, Croatia, and Serbia – made possible by the BMU and the EUKI and continued by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK). The contract volume amounted to €2,239,278.27.
Results
Since the project began in November 2017, 1,137 young employees from 436 companies have qualified as Energy Scouts. On average, an Energy Scout has identified a savings potential of 152 MWh of electricity and 155 tons of CO2 per year in his/her company. The experienced project countries Czech Republic, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Greece withdrew from the project in April 2024 and are now offering the Energy Scout qualification on their own responsibility.
You can find more facts, background information and best practices in the brochure Erfolgsfaktor Energy Scout (German) or Success Factor Energy Scouts (English).
Last update: October 2024
