Centre for Energy Policy Energy Conversations:

Retrofitting for energy efficiency - will it be worth it in the end? (Chaired by Alf Young)

Registration and welcome refreshments from 5:30pm.

Event will run 6:00pm-7:30pm, and will be followed by a drinks reception.

Conversationalists include: Dr Nick Kelly (Reader, Mechanical Engineer, University of Strathclyde), Dr Sara Davidson (Research Director, Ipsos MORI) and Anthony Kyriakides (Head of Renewables, Energy Saving Trust Scotland)

Improving the energy efficiency of our homes can be an effective way to reduce final energy demand – saving people money and reducing emissions. Research shows that more efficient energy use can deliver a wide set of benefits ranging from increasing people’s real income and spending power, to creating new job opportunities, boosting investment and increasing tax revenues. This means energy efficiency should be a key part of any clean economic development policy.

However, energy efficiency improvements often have big upfront costs that homeowners may not be willing to pay, particularly given that the return on investment is not always very high. Governments may be able to support the cost of energy efficiency especially for people struggling with heating costs, but public budgets are tight and other spending might take priority.

The Scottish Government has made energy efficiency a national infrastructure priority and launched Scotland’s Energy Efficiency Programme to drive a massive increase in investment in energy efficiency in Scotland’s homes and businesses.

Reflecting on these issues, this Energy Conversation will seek to explore the following:

Are families themselves willing to ‘invest’ in more efficient energy technologies? If not, why not and what could be done about it? Or if they are, how can we learn from this to scale up that investment?
Should – or how far should – government support energy efficiency?
Are we willing to accept reductions in other public services or increased taxation in order to improve the overall energy efficiency of our homes?
Is energy efficiency the best solution to fuel poverty?

CEP Energy Conversations: Retrofitting for energy efficiency