A survey on the energy consumption and demand in a tertiary institution

The need for energy supply, particularly electricity, has been on the increase in the last two decades in developing countries such as Nigeria. Economic and industrial developments have led to this increase in demand for electricity. In universities, much of the electricity consumption is consumed in air conditioning systems, which are used to overcome the indoor thermal discomfort during harsh seasons. An amount of electricity is also consumed by laboratory equipment and machinery used for practical and demonstrations. Thus, if universities are to achieve the goals of teaching, research and community service, then proper management of electricity supplied to the system is needed in view of its limited availability. Since electrical energy in Nigeria is highly subsidised by the government, monitoring and controlling the energy consumption pattern in a university is a major aim in the country. However, there is still a lack of information about electricity end-use consumption in Nigerian universities. This paper presents the results of a walk-through energy audit conducted in a university and recommends means of tackling the problem from the demand end by focusing on the areas of potential savings flagged by the energy audit. It was noted that tackling the problem of energy demand from the users' end is quite challenging, but it might be the only hope of the school in view of inflexibility of supply.