PROMOTION OF PUBLIC CALL TO SMEs FOR PARTICIPATION IN FREE ENERGY AUDITS

    Following the publication of the Public Call for SMEs to participate in ten free energy audits under the TAEERES project, three workshops were held to promote the call. They were held in a hybrid form - online and live in the Chambers of Commerce in Novi Sad, Kragujevac and Belgrade. A large audience was able to inform about the activities carried out within the TAEERES project, as well as to ask questions related to the conditions of the current Public Call.

    In the first part of the workshop Mirjana Stamenić (PhD) project coordinator and expert in mechanical engineering, provided basic information about the TAEERES project funded by the European Union and co-financed by the Government of the Republic of Serbia and presented the details of the Public Call and the tender documentation to be submitted by interested small and medium enterprises.

    In the second part of the workshop, the coordinator and Radoslav Antić, an expert in energy audits in the field of electrical engineering, explained to the audience why energy audits are important as a tool for improving energy efficiency. They also answered the questions:

- Why is it important to have an organized system for monitoring energy flows in the company?

- What is an energy management system?

- What is an energy audit? How and who implements it? What is the final result of the energy audit?

- How can energy waste be reduced and significant improvements in energy efficiency achieved with different systems in industrial plants?

- What does the application of EE measures mean for the company's profit?

    Workshop participants were satisfied with the information about current topics in the field of energy efficiency, and the expert team of the TAEERES project hopes that by the end of the Public Call will receive a significant number of applications that will be evaluated and ranked. By Friday, September 24, 2021, the commission will select the ten best applications of companies in which energy audits will be conducted by the end of October.

    The final workshops, planned for the beginning of November, will present the summarized results of the conducted energy audits with conclusions on where the SME sector is in terms of energy efficiency.

In addition to the benefits of saving money, efficient use of energy contributes to reducing the use of non-renewable energy sources and reducing emissions of harmful components into the environment. Through responsible behaviour and efficient use of all resources, we contribute to sustainable development and ensure a good life for future generations.