Towards an International Energy Management System Standard

International Working Group Meeting: Beijing, China, 9-11 April 2008

About the Standardization Administration of China (SAC)
The Standardization Administration of the People's Republic of China (SAC) was established in April 2001 and authorized by the State Council to exercise administrative responsibilities by undertaking unified management, supervision and overall coordination of standardization works in China. SAC represents China to join the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and other international and regional standardization organizations. SAC is responsible for organizing the activities of Chinese National Committee for ISO and IEC. SAC approves and organizes the implementation of international cooperation and exchanging projects on standardization.

This Meeting was convened by UNIDO and the Standardization Administration of China (SAC) for the purpose of contributing to the process of developing an international Management System Standard for Energy through the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). UNIDO initiated a dialogue on the development of an international energy management standard at an expert group meeting on Industrial System Optimization and Energy Management Standards in Industry in March 2007, which included representation from the ISO Secretariat. As the result of that meeting, a request was submitted from the countries represented at the meeting to the ISO Secretariat to consider undertaking work on an international energy management standard.  In February 2008, the Technical Management Board of ISO approved the establishment of a new project committee (PC 242 – Energy Management) appointed to develop the new ISO Management System Standard for Energy (MSE).  As of March 2007, four countries (Denmark, Sweden, Ireland, United States) had national energy management standards. In addition, China had a draft standard, the Netherlands had an energy management specification, and the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) had formed a task force to develop a common standard for the European Union.  Since March 2007, additional countries have either substantially completed work on draft national standards (Spain, Thailand, South Korea) or initiated this process (Brazil). In view of the strong international interest in this subject area and its potential impact on industrial energy efficiency worldwide, UNIDO designed and launched a new initiative supporting the development of an ISO Energy Management System Standard while also ensuring that the issues and barriers of government policy makers, industry, and other three concerned stakeholders in developing countries are taken in due consideration in the ISO process. Within this initiative UNIDO has undertaken several key activities, including this international Working Group Meeting, and others are planned such as a series of regional studies to identify opportunities and barriers associated with adoption of an ISO MSE in developing countries.

Objectives of the Meeting
The specific objectives of the Meeting were:

  • To discuss the framework of ISO MSE.
  • To develop a shared understanding of the scope and intent of ISO MSE
  • To discuss commonalities and differences between existing and draft national energy management system standards
  • To review the scope of the planned UNIDO regional studies, including a proposed survey of industry in a number of emerging economies, and to discuss avenues for integrating the outcomes into the ISO process; and
  • To contribute preparatory harmonization work for development of the ISO MSE.

To prepare for this meeting, a gap analysis of the existing national energy management standards was prepared and sent to all registered participants in advance of the meeting along with the draft survey package to be used for the regional studies. Additionally, a document comparing a proposed MSE to ISO 9000 and 14000 was also prepared as an input to the meeting.

Structure of the Meeting
The Meeting was structured in sessions that took the form of both formal
presentations followed by Q&A, as well as interactive roundtable/ working group discussions.

Day 1
Day 1, Wednesday 9th, was primarily targeted to delegates and experts from developing countries and emerging economies. Session 1 introduced and highlighted the importance of a systems optimization approach in pursuing industrial energy efficiency, outlining how energy management system standards can support the integration of such an approach in corporate business practices. Session 2 offered the opportunity for an exchange of experiences and information on planned MSE activities between representatives of standards authorities from emerging economies. The afternoon session presented and discussed the regional studies that UNIDO is going to conduct to assess the potential impact of a new ISO management system standard for energy on industry in developing and emerging economies.

Day 2
Day 2, Thursday 10th, opened with an introduction to the ISO Project Committee 242 on Energy Management. The second part of the morning was devoted to the analysis of the new ISO MSE vis-à-vis ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 management systems. The views of industry and standards authorities on Management System Standards for Energy were  discussed. The afternoon started with a panel discussion during which representatives of national standards authorities exchanged ideas and debated how key stakeholders groups and counterparts of developing and emerging economies can actively participate to the development process of the ISO MSE.

Afternoon of Day 2 and Day 3
The afternoon of Day 2 and the whole Day 3 (Friday 11th) focused on identifying and discussing issues related to the harmonization of existing and proposed national/ international energy management system standards with a future ISO MSE. This was the core part of the Meeting and was designed to enable and stimulate the effective interaction of all participants. Presentations from UNIDO’s experts and representatives of national and international standard authorities were combined with thematic working groups. Each group debated a specific harmonization topic and subsequently reported the results of the discussion to the plenary. For each working group a Topic Leader was identified and a Facilitator assigned.

The participants attending the EGM included:

  • Representatives of national and international standards setting authorities and bodies
  • International experts in industrial energy efficiency and management system standards
  • Officials of Government energy and industry agencies
  • Selected representatives from the private sector and industry associations from China


Expected Outputs of the Working Group Meeting
The Meeting was expected to deliver the following outputs:

  • A shared development framework for an ISO MSE
  • Inputs to the refinement of the regional studies being carried out by UNIDO and suggestions for integrating the outcomes into the ISO process
  • A defined process for collaboration and contribution to the ISO standards development process