Innovative approaches to evaluating energy efficiency potential at enterprises

Purpose. To highlight the factors of formation and development of indicators for assessing the potential for increasing energy efficiency at enterprises. Methodology. In the research process, the following methods were used: economic-mathematical modeling (when developing indicators for assessing the potential for increasing energy efficiency at enterprises); grouping and generalization (when classifying factors for the formation of the potential for increasing the energy efficiency of companies’ activities); system analysis (when establishing the characteristic features of the potential for increasing energy efficiency and research mechanism of its formation). Findings. Characteristic features were established and the content of the energy efficiency improvement potential was defined. Grouping of the factors of formation of this potential was carried out. The methodological principles of its assessment are proposed, in particular, a number of indicators have been developed, with the help of which it is possible to get a complete and comprehensive picture of the possibilities of enterprises to increase their energy efficiency. Based on a sample of 110 Ukrainian enterprises, the potential for increasing energy efficiency using natural gas was assessed. The impact of certain factors on the value of this potential has been established. Originality. The concept of “energy efficiency improvement potential” has been clarified. The methods for grouping factors that affect the potential for increasing energy efficiency at enterprises have gained further development by highlighting new classification features, namely: by location; by the nature of the impact; according to the possibility of management; by place in the hierarchy; depending on the type of potential caused by the relevant factors; by content; by sphere of influence; by areas of increasing the energy efficiency of enterprises; according to the degree of variability. Methodological principles for assessing the potential for increasing the energy efficiency of enterprises have been improved, which, unlike the existing ones, provide for solving two tasks simultaneously in the process of such an assessment, namely: 1) formation of an optimal program of energy-efficient measures in relation to individual energy consumption processes; 2) determination of the optimal intensity of each of these processes. Practical value. The obtained results can be used by enterprises in assessing the potential of increasing the energy efficiency of their activities and in the formation of information support for energy saving management.