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Promoting a Subsidy for Energy Efficient Lighting Wil C. Nuijen Netherlands Agency for Energy and the Environment, Novem, The Netherlands Abstract In 1992 the energy distribution utilities in the Netherlands started to stimulate the accelerated introduction of energy efficient lighting in commercial buildings. This initiative was part of their Environmental Action Plan. The basic idea was to refund part of the investment for installation of energy efficient luminaires. The energy distribution sector introduced a nation wide subsidy system. This presentation deals with the various topics involved in the deployment of such a subsidy: The basics of the subsidy The promotion campaign to increase awareness of both the possibilities of energy efficient lighting and the subsidy The way that results are monitored Results from the promotion campaign Early results from the subsidy In brief one can conclude that the initial results look promising. One might expect that the goals will be achieved, though with some delay. The basic approach even seems to be expandable to other technical improvements both in the area of lighting as well to other techniques. Thorough monitoring yields valuable results that are used to improve further deployment of the subsidy scheme. The cooperation of different parties in the market, like manufacturers and qualified electricians, is vital. A drawback is that the subsidy scheme differs slightly over different utilities. Despite distinct effort to keep the regulation uniform over the entire country, not all utilities have conformed themselves entirely to the proposed scheme. Back to Right Light Proceedings startpage Top of page