Kilkenny County Council Secures ISO 50001 Standard

Kilkenny County Council has secured ISO 50001 accreditation. The ISO 50001 standard is the world’s leading Energy Management Standard for energy use and consumption and provides a systematic approach for organisations to achieve continuous improvement in terms of energy performance.

Paddy Phelan, CEO 3 Counties Energy Agency, Cllr. Andrew McGuinness, Cathaoirleach, Kilkenny County Council,  Anne Marie Shortall, Environment, Kilkenny County Council.

Photographer: Vicky Comerford
LtoR: Paddy Phelan, CEO for 3 Counties Energy Agency (3CEA), Cllr. Andrew McGuinness, Cathaoirleach, Kilkenny County Council, 
           Anne Marie Shortall, Senior Executive Officer, Environment, Kilkenny County Council.

Kilkenny County Council is pleased to confirm that it has secured ISO 50001 accreditation. The ISO 50001 standard is the world’s leading Energy Management Standard for energy use and consumption and provides a systematic approach for organisations to achieve continuous improvement in terms of energy performance.

 In welcoming the accreditation, Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council, Cllr Andrew McGuinness, said: “I am delighted that the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) following an extensive audit have confirmed that the Council's energy systems comply with the ISO 50001 standard. This is the culmination of many years of work by the staff of Kilkenny County Council, in particular the Energy Team who have worked hard to achieve the standard and I commend them for their efforts.”

The Council’s Energy Team comprises senior staff from across the organisation and includes the Line Managers of all the significant energy users (SEUs) in the Council from public lighting, the fleet of vehicles and the Council’s offices and buildings. Kilkenny County Council received invaluable support from the 3CEA (the three counties energy agency) in the process of achieving the standard.

The 3CEA supports the development of sustainable energy and provides a comprehensive range of services to public and private sector organisations and communities across the region.

Colette Byrne, Chief Executive of Kilkenny County Council said “energy management is an all-encompassing process and includes every aspect of the organisation from finance, human resources and buildings to maintenance, purchasing and planning. Our commitment to improving energy performance is reflected in our Energy Policy and in our Climate Action Charter. The ISO 50001 standard will help us deliver the target of 50% improvement in energy efficiency over the next 10 years as set in the National Climate Action Plan.”

Kilkenny County Council has already achieved the public sector energy efficiency target of at least 33% energy efficiency by the end of last year when compared to the 2009 baseline period. The ISO 50001 certification will be the basis of formulating a pathway to reach the even more ambitious energy efficiency targets that have been set for 2030 and beyond.

Important steps in the process include monitoring consumption, conducting energy assessments, setting energy performance targets and identifying opportunities for energy improvement. The spectrum of projects and initiatives implemented by the Council to achieve energy efficiency in recent years include the Public Lighting Energy Efficiency Project whereby the Council’s 11,000 Public Lights across the County will be retrofitted with more energy efficient LED lanterns (over 50% completed to date); upgrade of heating systems and the building fabric of the Council’s buildings; installation of energy saving devices and occupancy sensors in offices and the introduction of eco-driver training and a transport management system for the Council’s fleet of vehicles.

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