Government to promote energy efficient buildings

The Centre aims to save Rs 35,000 crore worth energy per annum by 2030 after adopting energy saving methods in all existing and new government as well as commercial buildings in the country.  

 By following the suggestions made in the Energy Conservation Building Code-2017 prepared by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency under the power ministry, the government says it could achieve 50% reduction in energy use by 2030.

 The cut in energy use will translate into power savings of about 300 billion units by 2030 and peak demand reduction of over 15 GW in a year. This will be equivalent to expenditure savings of Rs 35,000 crore and 250 million tonnes of CO2 reduction, says an official in the Ministry of Power.

 Adopting the building code for existing building means retrofitting existing buildings with energy efficient lights, installing power saving appliances, central air conditioning are some of the features to save the power.  For new buildings, the code also mentioned about the installations of renewable energy systems. 

 “If we save power by adopting energy saving method, it would help to light up rural households and provide sufficient power to farmers to irrigate their lands,” Power Minister Piyush Goyal had said. 

 With India consuming 15 GW electricity every year, building sectors consumes 30% and is second only to the industrial sector.