PROJECT “LEARNING NETWORKS IN MUNICIPAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS IN MEXICO” SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED

GFA has successfully completed the “Learning Networks in Municipal Energy Management Systems” project in Mexico. The GIZ-funded project was implemented as part of the program "Support for the Implementation of the Energy Transition in Mexico (TrEM) of the German Cooperation for Sustainable Development in Mexico". The intervention began in December 2019.It facilitated the implementation of energy transition in renewable energies and energy efficiency.

With the help of the project, 17 Mexican municipalities in the states of Tabasco, Oaxaca, and Yucatán introduced an Energy Management System which enables them to improve their energy performance and achieve significant cost savings.

Despite the COVID-19 restrictions, we focused on fieldwork during the first half of 2021. Our technical experts visited each of the states and municipalities to carry out energy diagnostics, mainly in the following sectors: Public buildings, public lighting, and municipal potable water pump systems. Our experts held workshops, webinars and personalized follow-up consultancies with each municipality in the three states, both face-to-face and virtual.

In the three learning networks, energy policies were drafted and signed, energy diagnostics were carried out, and improvement measures were identified. Finally, the results led to the preparation of energy management system manuals for each municipality. In addition, our experts prepared three memory documents for each participating state.

GFA was able to meet all indicators, despite the adverse circumstances of the COVID 19 pandemic, changing electoral periods in some states, and issues with the internet connection and technical equipment in the municipalities. We even exceeded the targeted number of municipalities with a functional energy management system. In addition to these reductions in GHG emissions, we generated monetary savings (e.g., from cancelled flights, in-person events, and reduced personnel costs).These savings enabled us to establish another network, the Energy Efficiency Network for Potable Water ("pump network"). This network, with a time frame of only six months, achieved extraordinary results¹.

In addition, the savings allowed us to create a sustainability and upscaling concept for the project, which included the following measures:

• Regional workshops for additional states.
• Mapping of national and international incentives for Municipal Energy Management Systems.
• Development of a self-learning online course on Municipal Energy Management Systems.
• Development of online course "Elaborating successful proposals for financing energy management measures for states and municipalities” (Moodle).
• Development and implementation of a Training-of-Trainer course to train tutors for the above-mentioned Moodle course.

In the course on successful proposals, participants learned how to acquire further funding for energy management systems. Our tutors assisted the municipalities in preparing an actual proposal for financing and guided the most successful participants in submitting their proposals to a bank. These actions have helped to ensure that networks and energy management activities continue after the end of the project, and even that new ones are introduced.

To conclude with the words of one of the participants of one of the Learning Networks:
“It was an experience that marked the lives of all the participants and, above all,
the students beginning their working lives in a new way: In my professional career, I will always keep in mind what I learned in my Network"

Project in brief

#Energy #Mexico #sustainability #climatechange #TrEm @GIZ #CONUEE

1 | A total of 10 municipalities or drinking water utilities participated and about 100 units were diagnosed. Of these 100 units, 67 projects have been identified with an annual electricity consumption saving of 11 GWh, which reflects a GHG reduction of 5,400 tCO2e/year. These reductions require an investment of 62,000,000 $Mex and show a profitability for the simple payback period of only 2.14 years.