296 Energy Project Financing: Resources and Strategies for Success
are having a discernible influence on global climate” (IPCC, 1995). Re-
sponding to the mounting scientific call for action to reduce emissions
of greenhouse gases (primarily those from fossil fuel use), the indus-
trialized nations recently committed to binding emissions targets and
timetables. The flexible, market mechanisms to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions included in the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to the U.N. Framework
Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) makes the need for an interna-
tional consensus on M&V protocol more urgent.
Guidelines have recently been developed by the Lawrence Berke-
ley National Laboratory that addresses the monitoring, evaluation,
reporting, verification, and certification of energy efficiency projects for
climate change mitigation (Vine and Sathaye, 1999). The LBNL study
determined that the IPMVP is the preferred international approach for
monitoring and evaluating energy efficiency projects because of its in-
ternational acceptance, because it covers many key issues in monitoring
and evaluation and because it allows for flexibility.
The IPMVP Adjustment Committee will be working through 2000
to build on the leading intentional consensus approach to implement-
ing, measuring and verifying efficiency investments to come up with
agreed on estimates of future energy savings and emissions reductions.
By achieving agreement on this issue, this committee will make a neces-
sary and important contribution to establishing a framework on which
international greenhouse gas trading can be built. For more information,
contact Ed Vine ([email protected]).
1.4 RELATIONSHIP TO U.S. PROGRAMS
The MVP is intended to include a framework approach that
complements more detailed national, or regional energy efficiency
guidelines in any country that it is used in. Following are the examples
drawn from the US.
ASHRAE Guideline 14
IPMVP is complemented by the work of the American Society of
Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) in
the form of its draft Guideline 14P Measurement of Energy and De-
mand Savings. In contrast to the ASHRAE document, which focuses at
a very technical level, the IPMVP establishes a general framework and
terminology to assist buyers and sellers of M&V services. ASHRAE’s
Guideline 14 has completed its first public review and hence was avail-