Environmental and economic benefits of Green Public Procurement through the Bilan Carbone and Life Cycle Costing methodologies: a case study for Arpa Piemonte ​

In this thesis the main objective is the identification and analysis of the environmental and economic benefits of the public tender for the modernization of the indoor lighting system of Arpa Piemonte. The first chapter systematises the regulatory and political framework around Green Public Procurement on different geographical scales: an overview of the international scenario in Europe, a national perspective for Italy and a regional one for Piedmont. Then, the second chapter analyses the existing literature on Carbon Footprint and Life Cycle Costing for the Italian scenario and identifies how these methodologies can be implemented in the ex-ante, in itinere and ex-post tendering stage, as requirements or means of proof for the contractor. Finally, the case study aims to analyse the economic and environmental benefits associated with the implementation of Green Public Procurement and Minimum Environmental Criteria in a specific tender published by Arpa Piemonte for its headquarters placed in the city of Turin. The focus lies on the benefits stemming from the modernization of the internal lighting system of the Agency linked to the transition from CFL to LED technology. For the analysis of environmental aspects, the focus is on the reduction of GHG emissions associated with LED lighting, a more energy-efficient technology than CFL, through the Bilan Carbone calculator developed in France by ADEME and ABC and adapted by ENEA to the Italian reality. The economic benefits were analysed with the calculator for the sectorial Life Cycle Costing study proposed by the European Commission in 2019, incorporating the cost of negative environmental externalities deriving from GHG emissions associated to the energy consumption. The case study is considered in a post-tendering scenario, with simplifications on ignition times and total system consumption; it intends to be illustrative on how similar consideration by the procurement officers may influence the future drafting of tenders and the overall environmental and economic performance of public entities.