Impact of 1973 Oil Embargo and 2005 Katrina on Energy Efficiency

The need for energy efficiency captured the attention of all sectors of our society in 1973 when an Oil Embargo was imposed by the oil producing and exporting countries. Interest in energy efficiency continued during the 1980s primarily due to environmental concerns and secondarily because of economic and industrial competitiveness issues. Recent energy supply disruptions caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita have generated a renewed interest in energy efficiency. Oil Embargo of 1973 was termed as “energy crisis” and “energy problem” in the industrialized countries. However, the technocrats took it as a challenge and as an opportunity. As a result of their work, to-day our refrigerators are twice as efficient, heating furnaces are one-third more efficient, cars are one-half more efficient, and light bulbs are four times as efficient. Interest in energy efficiency during the 1980s by the U. S. Government and its outcome became very handy when Katrina and Rita hit last year. The Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) of the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) had developed several energy efficient programs such as Best Practices Tools. Some of these tools are Air- Master, Motor Master, Steam System Analysis Tool (SSAT), Process Heating Analysis and Survey Tool (PHAST), Pumping System Analysis Tool (PSAT), Fans System Analysis Tool (FSAT) and the list goes on. Not only that, DOE had trained some Qualified Specialists to use these tools. As a result of these available resources, Save Energy Now (SEN) was the response from the DOE to the impacts of Katrina and Rita. Two Hundred Energy Saving Assessments (ESAs) were conducted for the most energy intensive manufacturers. This paper describes some details of the experiences and impacts of some of these ESAs. Some case studies are discussed in this paper