Within the activities to raise public awareness in Bosnia and Herzegovina about the importance and role of standards and standization, the Institute for Standardization of BiH (BAS) in cooperation with International Standards Organization (ISO) had organized three day workshop/seminar on „Energy management and standard ISO 50001- Energy management systems“.
Seminar was held at the premises of Parlamentary Assembly of BiH from 3 to 5 June 2013 with a finacial support of SECO (Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs).
Around 70 participants attended the seminar and they were mostly representatives of industry, scientific research organizations, institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, faculty, and consultants from the energy efficiency area. The speakers were Mr. Rainer Stifter, an expert from Austria, Mr. Dusan Djurdevac from the Institute for Standardization of BiH and Mr. Djordje Djogo from Optikum Ltd.

When it comes to energy, it is important to point out that, on one hand an increase in energy costs and price volatility and on the other hand higher restrictions regarding energy and distribution networks, are increasing the risks related to energy.

Renewable energy sources and energy efficiency alone are extremely significant because they are mechanisms that can guarantee more advanced approaches to energy management and have positive impact on environmental protection.
The purpose of the seminar was to promote better understanding of the requirements of this international standard. ISO 50001 can, through systematic approach and the establishment of energy management system, its implementation, maintenance and continuous improvement, contribute to better energy performances thereby reducing energy consumption and improving energy efficiency. This standard and its practical implementation is one of the key tools for increasing energy efficiency. It is important to note that ISO 50001 is applicable to organizations of all types and sizes.

The seminar presented a number of examples from European countries, which clearly shows that by implementing ISO 50001 in different organizations they managed to save up to 25% energy. According to the Energy Community Treaty and the Directive 2006/32/EC, BiH objective is to reduce final energy consumption up to 9% by 2018.