2024 summary – DB Energy’s achievements in energy efficiency projects

Date of publication: 2025-01-21 / Reading time: / Author:

The year 2024 in numbers for us means new services, international reach, large-scale projects, and tangible savings. DB Energy helps its clients achieve goals with a budget exceeding PLN 5.6 billion and annual savings of over PLN 2.2 billion. Read about the key results from the past year.

New services 2024

In 2024, we introduced two new collaboration options - updating the enterprise energy audit and Thursdays with an engineer. We strive to respond to the current needs of our clients and expand services to best meet their expectations.

Update of enterprise energy audits

This is why we first created Updates of Enterprise Energy Audits. This service is aimed at companies that are already implementing their energy-saving investment plans, have previously conducted an energy audit, and want to update it based on the latest data to comply with URE requirements. How does it work?

You fill out a form and receive from us a list of documents needed to update your audit. Since it is an update, you must have an audit from 4 years ago and provide it to us. Then we conduct an interview, search for new opportunities remotely, analyze the submitted documents, prepare a report based on them, and create an update along with the notification to URE. The whole process is shorter and less costly.

Thursday with an engineer

The second option, introduced at the beginning of December, is Thursday with an Engineer. These are special, free online meetings where you can discuss energy challenges in your plant with our technical team. We aim to solve problems and indicate solutions based on our experience, gained not only in audits but also in designing and implementing investments as contractors. This one-hour consultation is an opportunity to benefit from our knowledge.

If you work in a medium or large industrial company and have a question or want to clarify some doubts, feel free to schedule a session! It costs nothing :)

Selected case studies

In 2024, we analyzed 114 modernizations in companies in Poland and worldwide. We executed projects in Poland, Austria, Czechia, Belgium, Spain, France, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Croatia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Canada, the USA, and China. We also collaborate with EFESO Management Consultants, an international consulting group with 35 locations worldwide.

We prepared a brief summary highlighting the largest and most interesting projects carried out this year.

Largest modernization - 40 mln PLN - biogas plant

Cost: approx. 40.1 mln PLN
Savings: approx. 7.2 mln PLN per year
Payback period: approx. 5.5 years

In 2024, we conducted an enterprise energy audit at a municipal waste management facility. Based on this, we calculated one of the most interesting investments of the year: a biogas plant using bio-waste with an electric capacity of 3.0 MWh, along with the construction of a biogas storage facility. The projected cost of such an investment is over 40 million PLN. We estimate that the project will pay off in approximately 5.5 years.

This plant produces large amounts of biomass from selective waste collection, over 50 tons of so-called "organic mass" - waste suitable for composting. This waste can serve as feedstock for a bioreactor using anaerobic fermentation of the organic mass. By using such an installation, the company can not only process waste and generate energy for its own needs but also increase revenue by selling surplus electricity to the grid.

Shortest payback period - 0.5 year - fixing leaks in compressed air installation

Cost: approx. 200,000 PLN
Savings: approx. 420,000 PLN per year
Payback period: about half a year

In a company from the medical products sector, we conducted a Walk-Through audit analyzing the compressed air installation. It turned out that the installation had leaks causing compressed air to escape. Due to air losses, compressors have to operate at higher capacity to compensate for pressure drops, consuming more electricity.

In this specific facility, annual compressed air consumption exceeds 23 million m3. During our team's visit, the leaks caused about 30% loss of compressed air in the system. By reducing leaks to around 10%, it is possible to save approximately 709 MWh annually in electricity used to power the compressors.

Generally, leak removal in installations is a low-complexity, low-cost project. In this case, the estimated cost is about 200,000 PLN, with savings around 420,000 PLN per year. Reducing leaks in such installations should be a regular maintenance activity because complete elimination is impossible, and new leaks may develop over time. It is worth inspecting your facility's installations and planning regular inspections.

Largest emission reduction and the highest amount of recovered energy – heat recovery

Cost: approx. 6.7 million PLN
Savings: approx. 3.4 million PLN
Payback period: approx. 2 years
Emission reduction: approx. 2,300 tons CO₂ per year
Amount of saved energy: approx. 7,600 MWh per year

At a client in the automotive industry, producing components for passenger cars, we conducted an enterprise energy audit in which we identified as many as 19 different actions that could cost-effectively improve the plant's energy efficiency. One of the analyzed measures was heat recovery from cast iron components produced in the plant, which must be cooled to ambient temperature after casting.

Until now, the cast components were cooled naturally. To assess their heating potential, our engineers conducted a test which showed that one rack of castings can boil 1 m3 of water in 40 minutes! By using the recovered heat to power the absorption chiller, the production of chilled water used in the technological process becomes more efficient and consumes less electricity.

The saved thermal energy from the heat recovery process amounts to over 7,600 MWh per year. This means the plant saves as much thermal energy as more than 4,200 households in Poland would consume annually. Until now, the necessary cooling was produced using electricity. Thanks to the investment, this electricity will not be drawn from the National Power System. This means it does not need to be generated, and therefore no CO₂ will be produced.

How to determine how much CO₂ was saved in this case?

Each year, a national emission factor is determined. It allows estimating how much emissions were released during energy generation from various sources in the National Power System. If coal was the main source of energy, the emission factor will be higher than when the energy was mainly produced from renewable sources. Based on this factor and the amount of saved electricity that the plant would normally use to produce cooling for the technological process, we calculated that the company's initiative will contribute to a reduction of approximately 2,300 tons CO₂ annually after the modernization is implemented.

largest LNG-fueled cogeneration unit in the southern part of Poland – next stage of investment at Schumacher Packaging

At the Schumacher Packaging plant in Myszków, we successfully completed the second energy modernization, which significantly increased the factory's energy efficiency. Thanks to the introduction of a modern cogeneration installation, alongside several other projects, the plant can independently produce a total of almost 9 MW of electricity. This covers about 80% of the entire facility's energy demand. The cogeneration installation was commissioned in September 2024, and its cost will be recovered in approximately 3 years!

Technologies to be implemented in 2024 – a catalogue of solutions

This year we worked for many different sectors – mineral, metallurgical, chemical, food, and automotive industries. We visited companies specializing in glass and wood processing, producing battery components, processing food or animal feed. And we still want more!

Among the technologies we implemented for clients were:

industrial heat pumps,
modernization of local boiler rooms,
modernization of compressor rooms and compressed air installations,
improvement of process automation,
replacement of machines with energy-efficient ones,
heat recovery (process heat, flue gases, local energy sources, and others) along with the design of heat utilization,
modernization of refrigeration installations,
thermal insulation of installations,
cogeneration and trigeneration, including biogas,
adjustment of contracted power and tariff change,
installation of inverters and their control,
renewable energy sources (photovoltaics).

Strategic partnership

At the end of November 2024, the Management Board of DB Energy S.A. signed a strategic framework agreement for comprehensive support of energy efficiency projects for entities from the OKAM group. The agreement was concluded for 10 years.

Under the agreement, DB Energy SA will be responsible, among others, for conducting energy audits, advising on energy generation, trading, and distribution, preparing project concepts and financial analyses for individual projects carried out by OKAM. DB Energy SA engineers will also manage investment projects to achieve the best financial results.

dr inż. Piotr Danielski Vice President of the Management Board of DB Energy

What awaits us in 2025?

Company energy audit – audit year

In 2016, the Energy Efficiency Act came into force, implementing the provisions of the European Directive EED 2012/27/EU. Based on this, all large enterprises in Poland are required to carry out cyclical energy audits. The first audits had to be completed by the end of 2017. Companies subject to the obligation must repeat the audit every 4 years and notify the Energy Regulatory Office.

Consequently, large enterprises that conducted an audit in 2017 should have conducted it again in 2021 and will be required to do so in the upcoming 2025. We have prepared several materials on this topic to help you resolve doubts regarding the audit. They answer questions such as:

What is an energy audit?
Who is required to conduct it?
Where to carry out an energy audit?
What to do with the conclusions of the audit?

Through the eyes of a lawyer

We also run a series Green transformation in the light of the law, in which attorney Maciej Stępień answered questions regarding penalties that may be imposed on entrepreneurs by the President of the Energy Regulatory Office for failing to conduct an enterprise energy audit.

Here is the first blog entry: Penalty of the President of the Energy Regulatory Office for failing to conduct an enterprise energy audit

Where were we? Where are we going?

Events 2024

We participated in the largest events in Poland as attendees, partners, or sponsors. Below you will find a few of them. Click to learn more:

Events 2025

Our calendar is slowly starting to fill up. What do we have planned?

March 25-26, 2025 - Polish Climate Congress 2025 in Warsaw
September 2025 – DISE Energy Congress in Wrocław
September 2025 – Energy Fair in Jachranka
October 2025 – Energy Days in Katowice

This list is not final, but one thing is certain – there will be many opportunities to discuss profitable decarbonization and energy efficiency.

Presence in media

CIRE

In 2024, we continued our cooperation with the CIRE.pl portal, where we run our own thematic service called Energy Efficiency. This year we wrote over 30 articles and expert statements on green transformation, energy, financing sources for energy-saving projects, audits, and industrial investments. The reach of articles on CIRE is up to 340 thousand people! We will also be present here in 2025.

This is our section: Energy Efficiency

LinkedIn bulletin

In October, we launched a bulletin on LinkedIn, which was subscribed to by over 300 people in the first 24 hours! There are already 11 issues, which you can find here.

Subscribe to our newsletter: Energy Efficiency

Karolina Kozak Marketing Specialist at DB Energy

Newsletter

We have also launched our newsletter, delivered to subscribers' inboxes once a month. Our audience already numbers over 3500 people!

Stay up to date with zero-emission topics subscribe to the newsletter

Dorota Jeżewska Marketing Director at DB Energy

Collaboration with the Chemia i Biznes portal

In 2025 we will collaborate with the Chemia i Biznes portal, where we plan to publish new expert content in the context of the chemical industry. This is an opportunity for us to share more about the possibilities offered by energy efficiency in this sector. It is one of the most energy-intensive industries, with significant energy potential due to ongoing chemical processes. When chemical reactions occur in technological processes, a large amount of heat or steam is often produced. Based on our experience, we will create interesting materials for the portal, in which we will certainly share more insights.

We have already written about two projects in the chemical industry on our website:

Charity actions

Corporate run 2024

In May, we took part in the Corporate Run – this was already the 12th edition of the event. This year it supported 13 young heroes of the Everest Foundation. Part of our team ran remotely, while the other participants completed the route in Wrocław's Skowroni Park. They were also accompanied by wonderful supporters. This year the organizer of the Run donated PLN 638,120.89 for the treatment and rehabilitation of the Everest Foundation's wards.

Collection for the Animal Shelter in Świdnica

During the summer holidays, we organized a collection in our office for the Animal Shelter for Homeless Animals in Świdnica. The shelter, operated by the Mam Pomysł Foundation, has been functioning since 2017. It cares for around 120 dogs and cats. Thanks to the mobilization of DB Energy employees, we raised approximately PLN 1,000 for the shelter – we hope our contribution supported the canine and feline residents.