»Quality pays!« Francisco Boshell from the International Renewable Energy Agency directed this clear message to the visitors of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP23) in Bonn – the largest conference ever organized in Germany. And the message was well received. Boshell’s contribution was part of the PTB event »Fulfilling the Promise of Paris – Quality Infrastructure for the Energy Sector«. Professor Joachim Ullrich, President of PTB, made the special role of quality infrastructure clear in his opening speech: Without a functioning quality infrastructure system throughout the entire value chain for renewable energies, the output of this future-oriented sector will suffer and consumers will lose faith in the technology. Professor Ullrich pointed out the fact that accredited test laboratories, for example, can guarantee the safety and long lives of solar modules.
Sybille Braungardt from Öko-Institut emphasized the importance of effective standards for energy efficiency and their significance for the avoidance of CO2. Josaphat Rizal Primana outlined (from the viewpoint of Indonesia) that the fact that users will accept a new technology when introducing renewable energies strongly depends on their faith in this technology. Salvador Echeverria, who works for the Mexican metrology institute CENAM, underlined the long-standing and excellent cooperation within the scope of different projects with PTB. He explained the key role of quality infrastructure for the energy sector by saying, »The establishment of new metrological services for the energy sector has resulted in companies settling in Mexico.«
The podium guests and participants were in agreement during the lively discussion at the event. Despite the key importance of quality, awareness of this topic is still lacking at the political level and among consumers. In consequence, the core message of the event to all stakeholders in the energy sector was that quality infrastructure is especially worthwhile in the sector of renewable energies and energy efficiency, and therefore plays an important role in climate protection.
