CEPI - European Association of Real Estate Professions

A provisional deal on the proposed energy efficiency directive was struck by MEPs and Council negotiators on 14 June. This followed months of negotiation on the original proposal which would require Member States to set themselves indicative national targets and save energy by renovating buildings and stipulating energy savings to be delivered by utilities. CEPI welcomes the progress which has been made in this dossier.

The proposed directive requires each Member State to set its own target for energy saving and to present a national efficiency action plan every three years. It would require Member States to renovate 3% of the total floor area of “heating and/or cooled buildings owned and occupied by their central government”. This is applicable to buildings with a “total useful floor area” of more than 500 m² and as from July 2015 of more than 250 m².

The directive would also require large enterprises to undergo an energy audit and Member States to carry out and notify to the Commission a “comprehensive assessment”, by December 2015, of the scope for applying high-efficiency cogeneration and efficient district heating and cooling. MEPs also proposed establishing financing facilities for energy efficiency measures which Member States would have to facilitate.

The provisionally agreed text will be put to another vote in the ECON Committee, probably in July, and then a plenary vote in the Parliament in September. It is clear that buildings represent remaining untapped potential for energy savings and that effective energy efficient construction and renovation is important for the future of the property market.