Explainer

DW-WORLD.DE: The GTZ trains energy managers, above all in India and in other Asian countries. What's the aim behind it?

Jens Burgtof: Here in India, large companies must hire such energy managers. This obligation emerged from a discussion about how we can separate India's economic development, which is marked by growth, from such growth in the energy sector. That's why it was decided a few years ago that large industries - above all the big consumers - would be given help in more energy efficient production. Then we hit upon the idea that you could have special energy managers for the job. It was decided that they should be in a position to take responsibility for this field within a company and implement energy-saving measures. They should also be in a position to inform the licensing authorities.

What do the managers learn at the GTZ?

They're mostly people with prior training - they often come from the fields of engineering, physics or chemistry. They are often trained in new technologies for energy-saving production in several areas - whether it's in the chemicals or paper industry or even power plants.

How long does the training last?

The participants undergo the training parallel to their work. As I said, the large energy-intensive companies in India are obliged to hire such energy managers. Normally, the companies select qualified people from their own ranks and send them for further training. The training involves self-learning. That means that all the necessary documents and papers are available online on a special Web site. The participants can also prepare for exams with the help of the site. This exam is taken in Delhi together with the office for energy efficiency of the Indian energy ministry. The candidates get a certificate once they pass the exam and become certified energy managers. So the training lasts for as long as they need to finish it - there's no fixed timeframe. The candidates can be successful very quickly or they can take one or two years to do it - it all depends on how busy their working lives are.

The Web site that you talked about is called EnergyManagerTraining.com. It's got more than two million visitors. How do you explain its success?

The site doesn't just include the curriculum and teaching materials for the energy managers. It also offers comprehensive information about new technologies, regulations and standards in the energy sector. It's now developed into a universal site for all questions relating to energy efficiency. We now don't just get clicks from India but also from neighboring countries.

Do you think Germany needs such a Web site?

I'm not aware of anything comparable in Germany. You probably need to look at different providers. But I'm not aware of such a comprehensive collection of information on any one single portal. But I have to say that it's a bit difficult for us to manage. New information or new lectures or publications are often linked to the site. Right now we're revamping the whole thing because we think that the Web site's clarity has suffered a bit in the past years. But the users here in India are familiar with the site. They register with it, regularly use it, exchange information and pose questions if they encounter problems. And we make an effort to find the answers.

How do you think this training can help companies save costs and protect the climate?

We regularly publish examples that show how energy-saving measures in companies can be implemented with little effort and how quickly such investments pay. We had a company that invested $300 (225 euros) in it and in the first year alone, it had saved energy costs worth several thousand dollars. Such examples spur other companies to do the same and look closely at their own energy systems.

Jens Burgtorf is the head of the GTZ's Indo-German energy program. He's an energy systems technician and was employed in the energy sector before he began working for the GTZ.

Author: Martin Schrader (sp)
Editor: Mark Mattox