Energy Savings in Cooling and Ventilation Are Crucial for Achieving Climate Goals

In a research project by the German Federal Office of Economics and Export Control and the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Guidehouse investigated the energy saving and emission reduction potential of air conditioning and ventilation systems. These systems already account for a large part of the building-related electricity demand in Germany. Without further measures, the energy demand of air conditioning and ventilation systems is expected to rise even more significantly. It thus plays a decisive role in achieving Germany’s goal of a climate-neutral building stock by 2050.

Based on a comprehensive obstacle analysis, the expert team led by Guidehouse found that the high energy demand was not only due to a lack of efficiency, but also due to lacking operational optimization, inadequate sizing or missing information for building owners about energy consumption and associated operating costs.

As part of the research project, 39 possible political measures were identified to reduce the high energy demand. The most relevant ones were prepared for implementation within the framework of the project. These include information aids such as an online quick check, a system label as a uniform benchmark for the efficiency of air conditioning and ventilation systems in operation, and the introduction of a metering requirement for new ventilation systems. If the most relevant measures were implemented by 2030, they could yield total final and primary energy savings of approx. 11 PJ / a and a CO2 reduction of approx. 1 MtCO2. This translates into a saving of 3-4% compared to today's level. By 2050, the savings achieved by the measures could grow to more than 7%.

Download the report "Potentials of Air Conditioning and Ventilation" in German with an English summary.