The overlooked efficiency opportunity inside Southeast Asia’s industrial plants

As electricity costs and demand rise, improving existing equipment could lower consumption, costs, and emissions.

Singapore faces record-high electricity tariffs in the third quarter (Q3) of 2026, a report said. Whilst the immediate impact is higher energy bills for household consumers, the increase sharpens the focus on how efficiently electricity is being used by industrial operators running energy-intensive equipment as well.

Global electricity demand is now rising more than twice as fast as overall energy demand. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA)’s Global Energy Review 2026, electricity consumption grew by nearly 3% in 2025, compared with a 1.3% increase in total energy demand, driven by growing use across buildings and industry.

For industrial operators, this makes improving the efficiency of electricity-intensive equipment increasingly important. Whilst faster efficiency gains helped slow overall demand growth, progress remains well below the rate needed to meet the global goal of doubling energy efficiency improvements by 2030.

A significant source of industrial electricity demand
Industrial pumps represent a significant energy efficiency opportunity and account for more than 20% of the world’s electrical energy demand. Even a 1% improvement in pump energy efficiency would save around 59TWh, which is roughly equivalent to Singapore’s entire annual electricity consumption, whilst also saving around 28 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. The potential impact is immense and in some instances the improvement could be as much as 20 to 30%.

According to Statista, the Asia Pacific region accounts for approximately 50% of the world’s primary energy consumption due to rapid urbanisation and industrialisation, and is responsible for an estimated 52.2% of energy-related CO2 emissions, according to the UN Environment Programme’s Review of Climate Ambition in Asia and the Pacific. According to IEA, since 2015, Southeast Asia’s energy demand has risen by around 40%, whilst electricity demand has grown twice as fast as overall energy use.

The opportunity for energy efficiency is clear, yet many assume that if a pump is operating reliably, it is also efficient.

Looking beyond the largest pieces of equipment
Optimising pump efficiency offers substantial financial benefits, potentially including significant reductions in electricity and operating costs across large industrial sites.

However, existing efficiency programs tend to focus on ‘big ticket’ items such as boilers, turbines, and other process critical equipment overlooking the collective impact of high energy pumps. Many operational teams only take a snapshot in time, without understanding the historic data. Others will not provide the after-support required to ensure the savings are delivered as predicted or use the latest digital technologies to analyse and monitor.

Altogether, there is room for a new best practice standard of sorts that brings together the fundamental steps in achieving energy efficiency into one end-to-end process from consultancy and retrofitting services through to ongoing monitoring. By combining digital analysis, machine learning and ongoing monitoring with hands-on technical experience, there are many more benefits that can be unlocked in the process, for example, improved reliability, reduced energy intensity, and increased mean time between failures.

Establishing where the greatest savings lie
Improving pump efficiency starts with understanding how equipment is performing under current operating conditions. Historical data on flow, pressure, power consumption, operating hours and maintenance can be reviewed alongside the pump’s original design specifications to identify whether it is operating close to its best efficiency point. This should also take account of changes in plant output, process requirements, and duty conditions, all of which can affect performance over time.

Assessment should extend beyond the pump itself to consider the wider system, including pipework, control valves, operating schedules and process demand. This helps operators determine whether inefficiency is being caused by the equipment, the surrounding system or a combination of both, and allows opportunities to be prioritised according to their potential impact.

Potential measures will depend on the condition of the equipment and the requirements of the plant. Measures may include adjusting hydraulic performance to suit current operating needs, replacing worn components, reducing mechanical losses, improving internal surface condition, or changing the way the pump is controlled. Each option should be assessed against expected energy savings, implementation cost, downtime, operational risk, and payback period.

Once changes have been made, performance should be measured against the original baseline under comparable operating conditions. Continued monitoring can help confirm whether the expected savings are being achieved, identify deterioration, and ensure that efficiency gains are maintained as plant conditions change.

Proven savings from existing equipment
Companies are beginning to realise the measurable value of pump efficiency upgrades, not only in cost savings, but in reliability and carbon reduction.

Industrial pumps are a major source of potential energy efficiency. A more cohesive approach to their operation and maintenance that combines digital techniques with hands-on expertise could lead to a significant uplift in a plant’s operational, environmental, and financial performance.

Cumulatively, the savings could slow the growth of global energy consumption and support the decarbonisation of industry whilst also improving the reliability of society’s critical infrastructure.