Energy

Reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions are top priorities.  We aim to develop the campus as a resource-efficient sustainable energy community.  As outlined in both the NUI Galway Energy Policy and in the NUI Galway Statement of Fundamentals, we operate an Energy Management System which complies in every respect with all legal requirements related to our energy use and to have this system externally certified by an independent body. We achieved ISO 50001 status in 2012, and became ISO-50001: 2018 certified in 2020 meaning NUI Galway operates to an internationally recognised Energy Management System standard aligned to the UN SDGS, enabling us to establish systems and processes necessary to improve energy performance, efficiency, use and consumption.  

NUI Galway is committed to meeting the new Energy and Carbon targets set out in the Government Climate Action Plan of 2020 to 2030. The Government’s new 2019 Climate Action Plan has now increased the level of ambition to a 50% improvement in public sector energy efficiency and a 30% reduction in CO2e1 from the sector by 2030. However NUI Galway signed a Public Sector Energy Partnership agreement with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI)  which committed the University to lead by example to meet and exceed this public sector energy efficiency improvement target of 33% energy reduction by 2020.  Achieved by reducing energy use in new and refurbished buildings, measuring and reporting energy use, implementing energy-saving initiatives, investing in renewable energy sources and reinvesting energy cost savings in new sustainability technologies. In 2018, two years ahead of schedule, our total energy consumption had gone down by 34% from the baseline, by 2019 we reached 40%, thus exceeding the National Government target of 33% energy efficiency by 2020.

All of NUI Galway’s sustainable Energy activities, plans and targets are in detailed further below: 

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