MoU signed at Fifth US-India Energy Partnership Summit.
By The American Bazaar Staff
WASHINGTON, DC: The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and United Technologies Corp (UTC) have announced the formation of the United Technologies -TERI Center of Excellence on Energy Efficient Buildings in India.
The newly-created Center of Excellence will address energy diagnostics and evaluation of energy efficiency in existing buildings in specific cities in India, according to a press release.
While TERI will evaluate and enhance energy efficiency in existing buildings in India, the initiative has been made possible by UTC.
Dr R K Pachauri, President TERI North America and Director General, TERI, said in a statement: “Buildings are a source of emissions of various gases and pollutants, and directly as well as indirectly, they account for about 19 per cent of greenhouse gases globally. Today we have knowledge and experience with technologies and techniques by which emissions can be reduced appreciably without compromising on comfort and convenience for users of buildings.â€
He added that “for India higher energy efficiency in buildings is also essential for ensuring energy security for the nation.â€
Dr. J Michael McQuade, SVP Science and Technology, UTC, said in a statement: “With India’s expected urban expansion over the next 20 years, it’s imperative that we make India’s existing and future buildings more energy efficient.â€
The United Technologies -TERI Center of Excellence on Energy Efficient Buildings in India’s cities will work to address the following, according to the release:
- Development of energy use reporting framework for the existing building sector;
- Evaluation of the existing building energy rating systems;
- Derivation of tool and techniques for energy management, real time reporting of energy consumption, and identification and cost benefit analysis of energy conservation measures;
- Development of Measurement and Verification (M&V) protocol for establishing the energy saving potential of various energy conservation measures;
- Formulation of design and retrofit guidelines that could be suggested as an addendum to relevant codes and standards; and,
- Development of supportive standards and regulation that will enable market uptake of energy efficient technologies.
The announcement of the United Technologies -TERI Center of Excellence on Energy Efficient Buildings in India was made at the Fifth US-India Energy Partnership Summit, a multi-stakeholder platform to address US-India collaboration on energy access, efficiency, security and technology. The Summit deliberated on ‘Accelerating Resilient Growth and Development’ and participants addressed various issues related to green buildings and energy efficiency.
Globally, buildings account for 40 per cent of the total energy consumption and have the potential of reducing energy consumption by up to 60 per cent using energy efficient technologies. In India, the building sector accounts for approximately 35 per cent of the total energy consumption and is growing at a rate of 8 per cent annually. In the US, the contribution of the building sector is around 40 per cent of the total energy consumption.