Address risk and opportunities in energy management systems according to ISO 50001: methodology and application for a production plant

The ever-increasing importance of energy efficiency and continuous improvement of energy performance has led Energy Management Systems (EnMSs), especially in the industrial sector, to spread rapidly in recent years. The international reference for EnMS is represented by the ISO 50001 standard, published for the first time in 2011 and now in its second edition (August 2018). To allow easier integration with other management systems, the new edition of the standard follows the High-Level Structure of the most famous ISO standards relating to management systems (as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001), usually widespread in organizations. As for the other management systems, it introduces the concept of Risk Management. Risk management is a widely discussed issue, but its contextualization to the energy scenario is not always immediate and straightforward. Although the scientific literature may support the identification of sources of energy risks, it does not provide useful tools for their analysis and management. By defining a structured methodology, this work aims to propose a tool that can provide real support to companies in the identification, evaluation, and planning actions to address risk and opportunities for the introduction of an EnMS according to ISO 50001 standard. The methodology developed follows the guidelines suggested by the international standard ISO 31000:2018 (Risk Management-Guidelines), contextualizing them in the energy scenario. The method consists of three main steps: definition of the reference context, risk assessment, and risk treatment. Furthermore, the methodology's application allows understanding the effects that the introduction of an energy management system has on the management of the energy risks of an industrial site. The proposed methodology has been successfully applied to a real case study of a company operating in the industrial sector with an ISO 50001:2011 certified EnMS to transition to the new edition of the standard.