LONDON: Energy productivity investments “may be heavy now, but you can certainly expect savings in the long term,” Miguel Munoz, Chief Resorts Officer at Club Mahindra (part of the group Mahindra Holidays), said during an EP100 webinar this week.
EP100 is The Climate Group’s global, collaborative initiative of leading businesses pledging to double their energy productivity, which means getting more economic output from each unit of energy or - in other words - to use better energy, better.
Mahindra Holidays joined EP100 in September 2016, making the commitment to double its energy productivity in less than 25 years – highlighting how sustainability is at the heart of the business. In doing so, Mahindra Holidays was the first global hospitality company to take on a leadership role in energy productivity.
During the webinar, Miguel Munoz emphasised how energy efficiency saved US$68,000 at their Ashtamudi resort. Through the installation of variable refrigerant volume air conditioners, they were also able save 1052 gigajoules of energy – with a payback period of just 16 months, this project has helped to lower both costs and emissions.
BUSINESS LEADING CLIMATE ACTION
Mahindra Holidays is also actively supporting India’s national commitments to mitigate the impacts of climate change by applying the same energy productivity measures at all its resorts worldwide. This is further evidence of the fundamental role businesses can – and must – play if we want to achieve the climate goals set in the Paris Agreement in December 2015.
Moreover, the group is taking full advantage of the benefits offered through the EP100 initiative brings, which include sharing solutions and best practices with other business leaders and demonstrating how energy productivity makes good business sense.
During the webinar, given to members of the International Tourism Partnership – including Marriott International, Hilton, and Accor Hotels – Miguel Munoz showed how Mahindra Holidays improved its energy productivity by 43% between 2008 and 2013 - an impressive average annual improvement of over 6%.
“We were able to achieve this result using technologies and practices that helped us to reduce energy consumption, while continuing to provide world-class service to our customers,” remarked Miguel Munoz.
TECHNOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS
Mahindra Holidays has also invested in equipment upgrades, such as switching to light-emitting diode (LED) lighting. However, heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems account for the highest proportion of the company’s energy use. To address this issue, the group has installed highly-efficient heat pumps and variable frequency drives, while ensuring temperature optimization.
Beyond capital investments, management practices have also proven crucial for driving energy productivity improvements. Mahindra Holidays has worked to educate both members and staff in energy-saving techniques, along with other sustainability strategies.
For Mahindra Holidays, the journey to double energy productivity is fully underway. New resort acquisitions between 2014 and 2016 give the group the unique opportunity of implementing the lessons learned on energy productivity at new facilities, with expanded staff and market reach.
By Grace Gosling