Energy efficiency: Europe’s route to a leaner, cleaner future
8 September 2025 
While we focus on adopting new energy supply technologies, including renewables, to achieve climate goals, we risk ignoring the vast potential of improving the efficiency of existing installations. Erich Labuda, president of ABB’s Motion Services division, argues that efficiency needs to be a cornerstone in the energy transition.
Europe’s energy transition is at a crossroads. Growing electricity demand and escalating regulatory pressures pose serious challenges to achieving climate goals, while also disadvantaging European companies compared to global competitors operating with lower costs. Yet, amid the efforts to decarbonise and secure energy supply, one powerful remedy still holds significant untapped potential: energy efficiency.
While many industrial strategies already incorporate efficiency measures, the challenge now lies in scaling up and accelerating these efforts. There’s still a tendency to assume that achieving net-zero will depend on innovation, when in fact, the tools we need are already available. So, the main issue is not technological readiness, but rather the scale, speed, and urgency of adoption.
As Europe invests in renewable energy generation and upgrading its infrastructure, we must equally prioritise improving the efficiency of our current use of energy. Energy efficiency is the fastest, cleanest, and most cost-effective approach available to drive the energy transition, which explains why the International Energy Agency (IEA) describes it as the “First Fuel”.
Energy security
Europe remains highly dependent on imports, with more than 60% of its energy sourced externally. This dependency makes its energy security vulnerable, which was highlighted during the recent energy crisis when prices surged to unprecedented highs, impacting both businesses and households. Complex sustainability reporting obligations, entrenched bureaucracy, and slow policy implementation across industries and countries, do little to alleviate this pressure.
Unsurprisingly, some businesses still perceive the energy transition as an being an unnecessary cost without immediate returns. However, reducing electricity consumption, curbing waste, and lengthening equipment lifespans, bring direct savings and operational benefits.
Payback periods for some of these efficiency investments can be as short as seven months, offering swift, continuing returns. The technologies exist – the key is recognising the economic and environmental gains and rolling them out at scale.
Untapped potential
Heavy industries stand to benefit significantly from efficiency improvements because they represent a large portion of total energy consumption. Electric motors account for more than 45% of global electricity usage, but often rely on old, inefficient technologies. If we were to replace them with today’s highest-efficiency motors, global electricity consumption could drop by up to 10% – equivalent to the electricity used by around 300 million homes.
With rising concerns over energy affordability, energy security, and industrial competitiveness, Europe cannot afford to overlook such opportunities.
While renewable energy technologies have advanced considerably, challenges still remain, including grid bottlenecks and fluctuating supplies caused by unpredictable weather. Combine these obstacles with increased heating, transportation and manufacturing loads, and we risk burdening an already overworked system with additional demand.
While the progress of renewables is undoubtedly transformative and must continue, achieving Europe’s 2030 and 2050 targets requires energy efficiency to move firmly from the periphery to centre stage – with immediate effect.
Efficiency in practice
Europe’s largest copper producer, Aurubis, recently implemented significant energy efficiency measures at its Pirdop plant in Bulgaria. The company replaced more than 450 outdated motors with IE4 Super-Premium and IE5 Ultra-Premium efficiency machines from ABB, and installed more than 300 variable-speed drives (VSDs).
It is expected that these measures will achieve a 28% reduction in the plant’s energy consumption, equivalent to annual savings of about 25GWh – enough to power more than 6,000 European homes. Environmentally, the lower energy consumption means reducing emissions by 12,000 tonnes of CO₂ per year – comparable to taking around 2,600 cars off the road.
Municipal infrastructures are not exempt from the positive impact of energy efficiency. In Kulmbach, Germany, an inlet pump at the city’s central sewage treatment plant has been upgraded with a high-efficiency (IE5) ABB SynRM motor and an ACQ580 drive. Operating around the clock, this is delivering energy savings of 7–10%. The upgrade demonstrates how municipalities can manage rising energy costs better, while contributing directly to local and national decarbonisation targets.
According to the IEA, we need to double the current global energy efficiency improvement rate by 2030 if we want to achieve net-zero by 2050. These efficiency gains are not aspirations for the future – they are achievable today.
For businesses, pursuing energy efficiency is more than just a sustainability requirement. It’s a strategic means of cutting costs and boosting competitive advantage in today’s high-cost environment. With expertise, technology, and an economic imperative already firmly in place – both in Europe and globally – all that remains is our determination to act.
