Experts at QF propose an energy efficiency report card for buildings in Qatar

Energy efficiency is one of the most powerful tools for combating global climate change. It refers to the technological changes that make energy consumption more efficient.

“The equation is straightforward: less energy used means less emissions generated,” said Dr. Monem Beitelmal, Principal Scientist at Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI), part of Qatar Foundation’s (QF’s) Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU).

Buildings alone account for approximately 32 percent of global energy use, and nearly 30 percent of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This essentially means there is lots of room for improvement when it comes to their energy efficiency.

“The problem is even more serious here with buildings accounting for the largest portion of total electricity consumption. In 2020, buildings in Qatar accounted for over 50 percent of the total electricity generated,” said Dr. Beitelmal.

A solution proposed by sustainability and climate change experts at Qatar Foundations is a dynamic web-based sustainability dashboard for corporate buildings in the country – one that monitors, categorizes, and reports a building’s energy consumption.

“The urgency of climate change necessitates decisive action across all sectors, including building energy consumption. If building operators in Qatar adopt this proposed sustainability dashboard to track their detailed energy consumption and use this information to map clear reduction targets, they will see immediate and noticeable improvements in their energy efficiency. This, in-turn, will translate into significant reductions in building carbon footprint across the country,” said Mohammed Ayoub, a Senior Research Director at QEERI.

A sustainability dashboard would allow more environmentally-conscious organizations in the country to cement their commitment to the environment while encouraging others to follow suit.

“Think of the dashboard as an energy report card. It will detail exactly where the energy is being used and how much. What we get now is overall energy consumption of the building; however, the challenge with this is it doesn’t categorize the consumption,” said Dr. Beitemal.

The advantage of categorized energy consumption readings is that it will allow to identify which areas need to be prioritized when implementing energy efficiency measures.

When asked how this would differ from LEED certification, Dr. Beitelmal said, LEED certification is about sustainable design and building practices, whereas the focus of the dashboard will be operations.

“A building can be designed to be sustainable, but that doesn’t mean it will automatically become energy efficient. This is where the dashboard will come in by offering a granular overview of the building’s energy consumption and uncovering which areas need to be made more efficient.”

Of course, to get this off the ground will require effort. It might be that some buildings don’t actually record the necessary data, but that doesn’t mean they can’t. The other challenge with such initiatives is that people might think of it as an energy audit that would highlight their energy inefficiency and reflect negatively on them.

“The important thing to remember for corporations here is, instead of looking at it as an exposé which will uncover shortcomings, we need to look at it as a learning process that offers us the opportunity to improve our energy efficiency,” said Dr. Beitelmal

Several institutions in North America have implemented sustainability dashboards with success. The ability of such a dashboard to show clear data on what is really going on allows users to make effective data-driven decisions and see their impact on energy efficiency in real-time.

Dr. Beitelmal said: “I personally think, QF has everything it needs to get the ball rolling on this. We have the infrastructure, the engineers, the scientists, and most importantly the vision to become leaders in sustainability.”

Dr. Marc Vermeersch, Executive Director, QEERI added: “At QEERI, we are committed toward providing tangible results, through extensive research, development and innovation, to enhance sustainability in Qatar and the region, and this dashboard is a step in the right direction. Our scientists bring together their expertise in energy, air quality, environment and sustainability research to help Qatar meet the objectives in line with Qatar National Vision 2030.”