How big an improvement in electrical electricity efficiency will companies be expected to make?

Companies which participate in PFE will contribute to improving the efficiency of energy use in industry, partly by taking measures to improve electrical efficiency. The target is that, broadly speaking, the measures should produce improvements in electrical efficiency equivalent to those that would have been achieved if the companies had paid the amount of tax on electricity which their participation in PFE relieves them from paying.

During the two first years in PFE, the company will carry out a review of its energy use. On the basis of this, measures to improve electricity efficiency will be confirmed by the Swedish Energy Agency. According to the regulations, measures with a pay-off time of less than 3 years should be carried out. Overall, the measures to improve the efficiency of electricity use must lead to improvements which, broadly speaking, are equivalent to those the company would have achieved if a minimum tax rate of € 0.5 per MWh had been imposed. This means that the participating companies taken together will reduce their electricity consumption sufficiently to eliminate the cost-raising effect of the tax completely. Accordingly, the Swedish Energy Agency and the individual company will assess what the practical effect on the company’s actions would be of imposing that tax rate for the programme period. The assessment will also examine how big the improvement in electricity efficiency would need to be to match this practical effect, broadly speaking.