EPBD: Opening the Door to Efficient Buildings
Buildings are responsible for 36% of greenhouse gas emissions and soak up 40% of energy supply. If the EU is to hit its 55% emissions cut target for 2030 and net zero target for 2050, these figures need to be slashed, and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is one of the main tools to achieve that.
Better performing buildings lead to multiple benefits such as cleaner air, healthier living and working environments and cheaper utility bills. An efficient building stock will also increase Europe’s energy independence, which, given Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the impact on energy markets, is an extremely important objective.
In this 2-pager, we set out what the EPBD update must include:
- Strengthen policy measures to boost energy renovation, with sufficiently ambitious minimum energy performance standards (MEPS), accelerated renovation passport schemes, and more comparable Energy Performance Certificates with better coverage across the EU
- Promote zero-emission buildings, with more ambitious criteria that differentiate them from nearly zero-energy buildings and factor in both primary and final energy consumption
- Go beyond energy savings, with a common vision on whole-life carbon for new buildings and a ‘Healthy Indoor Climate’ framework – ninety percent of our time is spent indoors
- Bolster technical building systems and digital approaches, encouraging digital twins and building information modelling, and extending technical building systems to electrical installations
Considering the great impact that our buildings have on both our energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, the EPBD is the key to open the door to a highly efficient building stock, and to a better future for the entire EU.
