Energy diagnosis in the industry

Energy efficiency and energy transition are the most recently coined terms to encompass a long-standing reality: the optimization of energy resources, security of supply, and energy savings.

Thanks to the policy pursued over several decades, France, with its energy consumption of 40 MWh per capita, is in line with the European average (reference 2023).

Since the first oil crisis in 1973, successive French governments have introduced incentives to encourage energy saving, with the aim of influencing the energy choices and behavior of French citizens and businesses. The primary objective was to reduce France's dependence on petroleum products by switching to other energy sources (mainly gas), reducing energy consumption and, consequently, the national energy bill. Progress towards this objective was measured by the reduction in France's energy intensity.

As France has few domestic energy resources, this energy bill weighs heavily on the import/export balance, despite the country's stated energy independence rate of over 50% thanks to nuclear power.

It seems essential that companies participate in the national effort to improve energy performance. To do so, they must understand their energy situation before making any decisions about energy choices, so that they are aware of all the relevant data and all the possibilities for improving their energy management.

The development of a methodical analysis approach leading to energy saving recommendations made energy audits essential and led to their widespread use, providing beneficial results that informed and guided the energy choices of decision-makers. The resulting actions and investments primarily reduced the energy bills of companies that pursued this approach.

The energy diagnosis of an industrial company involves drawing up the company's energy balance sheet and energy performance indicator, studying ways to improve them in order to propose energy saving recommendations and solutions that can lead to an action plan.

The terms "energy diagnosis" and "energy audit" will be used with reference to specific documents, but it should be noted that, for specialists in industrial energy performance, the former represents a more in-depth approach and content than the latter.

The recommendations relate to technical achievements but also to behavioral changes among users of energy equipment, and their study must include a technical and economic analysis.

There are several methods for conducting an energy audit. The two that fall within the normative domain are the most commonly used and are presented in this article.

In order...