Impact evaluation of an energy efficiency network policy programme for industrial SMEs in Sweden

Improved energy efficiency is a key factor in the shift towards sustainable energy systems and net zero emissions, both locally, regionally and globally. The total energy efficiency potential in industrial SMEs is high, but despite this large potential for improved energy efficiency, the full potential is not realized due to several barriers to implementation of energy efficiency measures. The barriers vary based on e.g., geographic location, company size, sector, etc., but for industrial SMEs the main barriers are other priorities, lack of time and lack of information about energy efficiency measures. Energy efficiency networks help companies with the support needed to successfully work with energy efficiency on site, such as conducting an energy audit, making an energy and implementation plan, and monitoring the results. However, there is so far a scarcity of ex-post evaluations of energy efficiency network policy programmes. The aim of this paper is to provide an ex-post impact evaluation of a Swedish regional energy efficiency network programme and propose a general method on how to evaluate energy efficiency networks. Results show that the achieved energy efficiency for the evaluated network policy programme is higher than previously evaluated stand-alone energy audit programmes, and that the majority of deployed energy efficiency measures are found among the support processes, such as space heating, ventilation and lighting.