LIEN members have saved in the region of €14 million in 2017
The Large Industry Network is one of the world's leading voluntary schemes in promoting energy efficiency in large businesses.
Over 200 of Irelands leading companies are significantly reducing their carbon emissions as committed members of the Large Industry Energy Network.
Network members are companies with annual energy bills of €1 million or more. The companies involved commit to improving their energy performance annually by implementing projects that cut down on usage, energy cost and greenhouse-gas emissions.
Throughout the energy-saving process, companies share their experiences by highlighting their success and failures. This allows organisations to learn from each other and to develop an action plan as a result. This expertise and knowledge has been built-up over the last two decades since the network launched in 1995. It also keeps companies up-to-date on the latest technology in energy efficiency and renewable energy trends by networking and sharing experiences through Special Working Groups.
The companies represent many diverse sectors of business and industry across Ireland. This includes manufacturing, agri-food, information technology, electronics and pharmaceuticals.
Over the last decade, the companies involved have been very proactive with their approach to improving their energy performance and the network is now recognised as one of the world's leading voluntary schemes.
What have we seen from network members over the years?
- Companies have being developing robust structured energy management systems founded in the ISO 50001 energy management standard
- Teams are adopting an energy efficiency first approach to their business
- There has been a significant shift towards integrating renewable technology such as wind, solar PV and bioenergy into businesses
- Comprehensive energy monitoring and metering systems have been adopted to track performance
- More members are cutting down on fossil fuels as a primary source for energy
Large Energy Industry results from 2017
The network continues to grow each year and we are pleased to announce that six new companies have joined the network in the last 12 months. These companies are Boortmalt, Abbott Nutrition, SISK, Henkel Ireland Operation and Research Ltd, Tipperary Co-op and Roadbridge.
The network members report annually to SEAI on their energy consumption and targets. Leading the way in strong energy management and investment in energy technology upgrades, businesses have saved in the region of €14 million and over 30,000 tonnes of CO2.
Hollister Incorporated are an example of how one company in the network managed to achieve €84,000 in savings by simply changing its air change rate in their cleanroom. They reduced their total energy consumption by 6% with close to zero capital investment. You can read more about how they did that in our case study section here.
Energy leadership will remain a key focus for all our network members
Climate change is now the conversation throughout all sections of society particularly because of the recent abnormal patterns in weather with extremes in winter and summer temperatures. Therefore, it is important that world leaders continue to tackle this issue head on.
Ireland is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and to reaching its EU targets by 2030. This reduction must come from all sections of society and network members will continue to make a massive contribution to this commitment.
Business sustainability along with reducing energy costs and greenhouse-gas emissions present massive opportunities for businesses. It reduces overheads, develops resilience to fluctuating energy prices and demonstrates leadership. It also encourages best practice in social responsibility and reduces the environmental costs for all of society.
