Evaluation of corporate energy management practices of energy intensive industries in Turkey Seyithan Ahmet Ates a, b, * , Numan M. Durakbasa a a Institute for Production Engineering and Laser Technology, Vienna University of Technology, A-1040 Vienna, Austria b Faculty of Business, University of Turkish Aeronautical Association, 06790 Ankara, Turkey article info Article history: Received 19 September 2011 Received in revised form 8 March 2012 Accepted 10 March 2012 Available online 12 April 2012 Keywords: Energy management Environmental management Energy efficiency ISO 50001 ISO 14001 EN 16001 abstract Turkey is one of a number of countries who still lack a national management standard for energy. Industrial energy consumption accounts for 42% of Turkey’s total energy consumption. With the help of a questionnaire and analytical framework, this paper investigates Industrial Energy Management Prac- tice in Turkey and highlights significant bottlenecks and shortcomings of energy intensive industries in terms of energy management application. The survey was carried out as a multiple case study of the Turkish iron, steel, cement, paper, ceramics and textile industries. Outcomes of the questionnaire are evaluated according to the analytical framework which covers company characteristics, regulations, external relations of the companies and internal organizational conditions. After analyzing these elements on the basis of a minimum requirement list, it was found that only 22% of the surveyed companies actually practice corporate energy management in Turkey. The main barriers to proper energy management implementation were identified as lack of synergy between the stakeholders, the extent and scope of energy manager courses, and inadequate awareness of and lack of financial support for energy management activities. As a guideline to overcome present obstacles, a set of policy options are offered: strengthening and restructuring of legal and institutional frameworks, promotion of energy efficiency, education, training and capacity building and facilitating implementation of the international energy management standard ISO 50001. Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Energy is essential in daily life and the issue of energy concerns all people around the world. In industrialized societies, the effec- tive energy supply and rational use of energy are primary condi- tions for economic development. Since the oil crisis of 1973 in particular, the world has been faced with the fact that energy raw materials are exhaustible and the quantity of these raw materials is dwindling. In addition to rapidly growing energy consumption, inconstant and mostly rising energy prices have been also a point of concern for stakeholders. As a result of these issues, manage- ment of the energy has been a subject of interest for all stake- holders as it is considered a significant method of improving energy intensity and lowering CO 2 emissions [1]. Energy management (EM) is considered a combination of energy efficiency activities, techniques and management of related processes which result in lower energy cost and CO 2 emissions [2]. Managing energy consumption in a proper manner has been a major target for sustainable development all over the world. The experiences gained from various energy efficiency projects illus- trate that unsustainable, one-off projects do not deliver the desired outcomes after a period of time if they are not monitored and adjusted in a continuous manner [3]. Therefore, these kinds of so- called stand-alone projects have evolved into corporate energy management practices. Research by Caffal (1995) demonstrated that industries who adopt energy management practices may save up to 40% of their total energy consumption [4]. With the aim of securing the energy efficiency gained through executed projects and offering organizations basic tools and guidelines for proper energy management, various countries and regional organizations have introduced national or regional energy management standards, such as the EU Energy Management Standard -EN 16001- and the Danish National Energy Management. With increasing pressure on organizations with regard to global economic competition and environmental regulations, the transi- tion from a traditional energy utility approach to a comprehensive * Corresponding author. Institute for Production Engineering and Laser Tech- nology, Vienna University of Technology, A-1040 Vienna, Austria. Tel.: þ43 1 58801 31142; fax: þ43 1 58801 31196. E-mail addresses: aum@mail.ift.tuwien.ac.at, seyithan.ates@thk.edu.tr (S.A. Ates). Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Energy journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/energy 0360-5442/$ e see front matter Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.energy.2012.03.032 Energy 45 (2012) 81e91