Personal Blog of Ellen MacArthur

Just before Christmas I attended a very interesting event, an awards ceremony for the Energy Efficiency Accreditation Scheme run by the Carbon Trust and the NEF (National Energy Foundation). The objective of the event sponsored by energy services company E.ON is to provide companies with their certificates who have reached the necessary levels of energy efficiency.

I was genuinely surprised by not only the level of commitment clearly shown by the businesses and individuals, but also by the sheer variety of companies getting involved. I thought that the businesses we would see would be more in the retail sector, but there was everything from aircraft production to car factories to brick makers! It really was a wide range of people, but the results were impressive, and what was even more promising was that because of the number of businesses who are accredited and reaching the necessary requirements, NEF now have to hold two events. Many of the companies involved were not insignificant on a national scale, but mainstream names both from the high street and industry.

There was so much enthusiasm in the room, and a huge amount of commitment which has led to some incredible results leading to winners in the various categories, from an individual’s impact, to businesses as a whole.

I was really pleased to present an award in my name to Nigel Palmer of Debenhams Retail Ltd who has shown passion, dedication and ensured that every Debenhams employee knows the importance of making sure energy is used wisely. In ten months, this awareness has reduced Debenhams CO2 emissions by 8,700 tonnes equivalent to 8% of targeted use.

The E.ON Energy Award went to Vauxhall Motors, Ellesmere Port for reducing absolute energy used and in particular for reducing the amount of energy used to build each car by 40% over the last three years. What was wonderful to see was the way that the businesses communicated their savings, and how often in their line of work there had to be a payback time, and it had to work. They really were success stories, and the more that these stories are communicated, the more you realise that in many cases it’s savings and not sacrifices!

More information:

The Energy Efficiency Accreditation Scheme (EEAS) is an independent award scheme recognising the achievements of businesses and organisations in industry, commerce and the public sector in reducing energy.
For more information about the Energy Efficiency Accreditation Scheme please contact: Penny Townsend on 01908 354541 or penny.townsend@nef.org.uk

The Carbon Trust is a private company set up by government in response to the threat of climate change, to accelerate the move to a low carbon economy by developing commercial low carbon technologies and helping organisations reduce their carbon emissions.
For more information on the Carbon Trust, visit www.carbontrust.co.uk or call the Carbon Trust Advice Line on 0800 085 2005.

E.ON is one of the UK’s leading power and gas companies – generating, distributing and retailing electricity – and is part of the E.ON group, the world’s largest private-sector energy services company.
For more information, visit www.eon-energy.com/ellen