3. Conducting an audit

An ideal way of identifying energy saving opportunities is to conduct an energy assessment or ‘energy audit’ of a site. An energy audit quantifies:

• current energy use
• equivalent greenhouse gas emissions
• makes recommendations for energy efficiency improvements.

Its scope can vary widely and can include an entire building or plant, or energy use associated with a specific process. An energy audit provides the baseline of current energy use.

The energy assessment can:

• help determine:
  • where energy is consumed
  • in what form
  • in what quantities and
  • at what cost.
• determine which areas of the site are contributing most to the operating costs
• highlight areas of significant energy use and identify areas of efficient and inefficient use
• provide estimates of potential energy savings
• implement costs and payback periods for each recommended action
• establish a base from which future energy savings and potential reductions can be measured
• provide a base for ongoing energy management programs in the organisation, including review and evaluation.

Licence holders at energy and greenhouse intensive facilities must conduct an energy audit. The audit will determine whether overall energy use is excessive and will establish benchmarks for monitoring and future investigations. Energy audits are not required for smaller facilities, but may be undertaken voluntarily to identify potential areas of energy cost reduction. The recommendations of an energy audit are best implemented through an energy management system, which can be integrated into existing environmental management programs.

(Extract: Energy and Greenhouse Management Toolkit, State Government of Victoria)

Levels of audit:

There are three levels of audit that can be undertaken. These are described in detail in Australian/New Zealand Standard AS/NZS 3598:2000

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To effectively quantify the energy efficiency of equipment, it is important to measure the efficiency of the appliance.