Smart energy tech to save BT £13m a year
UK communications firm BT is set to save 60,000 tonnes of CO2 and £13 million each year by embracing smart energy management technology.
The company, which is one of the largest energy consumers in the UK, predicts it will be able to reduce its annual carbon emissions by 5% with its nationwide adoption of energy management technologies.
BT is currently rolling out a programme that will see more than 22,000 smart meters and 1,500 building energy management systems installed to monitor and control energy consumption at its UK sites.
The programme uses a combination of technology and software that will provide the firm with real-time data on the energy consumption of its buildings.
According to the firm, the new system will enable it to spot where energy is being wasted by benchmarking properties against each other, and ensure that heating and ventilation systems are working efficiently together at individual sites.
“Having real-time energy usage information for thousands of buildings at our finger tips will really help us drive down BT’s carbon footprint and energy bills,” confirmed Richard Tarboton, director of energy and carbon at BT.
“Thousands of smart meters placed at BT offices, telephone exchanges and data centres will help us monitor energy usage levels and identify areas where we can deliver savings and make buildings more efficient.”
The company was recently ranked 44th in the first Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency scheme performance league table.
The smart technology programme forms part of BT’s plans to reduce its level of carbon output by 80% on 1997 levels by 2020, which has also seen the firm announce its plans to generate 25% of its UK energy needs from renewable energy sources by 2016.
The firm has confirmed it will be looking to roll-out similar energy management systems to its global operations next year.