The building sector is key to achieving the EU’s decarbonization and climate goals. More energy-efficient and ecological buildings will also directly improve the quality of life of citizens. Their renovation is to be ensured by the EPBD directive defining new, more stringent energy standards for buildings.
In March, The European Parliament adopted amendments to the European Commission’s proposed revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), increasing previously set targets and accelerating the deadlines for achieving them. Interinstitutional arrangements regarding the wording of the legal framework with the Member States and the EU Council lasted until July.
What about the efficiency of buildings?
According to the European Commission, the current situation of the sector and the scope of renovations carried out in recent years will not contribute to the implementation of the EU objectives of achieving 55% emission reduction by 2030 and net zero by 2050. Without an appropriate accelerator, it will be difficult for member states to meet ambitious climate plans.
Currently, buildings in the EU account for approximately 40% of energy consumption and 36% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. It remains the largest single energy consumer in Europe. As much as 80% of this is heating, cooling, and water heating.
Importantly, almost 75% of the total building stock in the EU is energy inefficient, and approximately 35% of buildings are over 50 years old. According to EC data, only about 1% of them were renewed annually until 2021.
Directive on the energy performance of buildings EPBD – what awaits building owners in the coming years
If the published proposals remain unchanged, building owners will face modernization activities in the short term. The main goal is to achieve the emission-free standard of all existing buildings by 2050.
Let’s take a closer look at the most important proposals.
Emission-free buildings
To achieve the emission-free standard, individual buildings must adapt to the requirements within the agreed deadlines:
- from January 1, 2026 – all new buildings occupied, managed, or owned by public authorities,
- from January 1, 2028 – all new buildings,
- by the end of 2050 – all existing buildings, apart from the exceptions provided for in the directive, including historic buildings.
Energy class of buildings
The amended directive also proposes conditions regarding the energy class of buildings. Each Member State was obliged to introduce them already under the original version of the EPBD directive from 2018. Poland is the only country in the EU that has not yet fulfilled this obligation. However, according to the announcement of the Ministry of Development and Technology, the system will be introduced in our country in 2024. The scale of energy classes introduced is to range from A+ to G.
In 2021, as part of the EPBD directive, it was planned that from 2030, each building would have to have a document containing the so-called energy certificate and reach a specific energy class. Current changes speed up the process and assume that:
- by 2030 – residential buildings must achieve at least energy class E, while for non-residential and public buildings the deadline is 2027,
- by 2033 – residential buildings must achieve at least energy class D. For non-residential and public buildings, the deadline is 2030.
Mandatory photovoltaic installations
Another requirement is the obligation to install photovoltaic installations on each building, if technically possible. According to the plan, buildings should comply with the requirements within the approximate dates:
- 2 years from the date of entry into force of the revised directive – for all new public and non-residential buildings,
- until December 31, 2026 – for all existing public and non-residential buildings,
- until December 31, 2028 – for all new residential buildings and covered parking lots,
- until December 31, 2032 – for all buildings undergoing major renovations.
These provisions raise doubts about the ability of the national energy system to absorb significant surpluses of generated energy.
Hydrogen in energy-efficient buildings
Hydrogen can provide fruitful use of surplus renewable energy, which at the moment of project development is most effective in public buildings and large-scale and commercial buildings. Especially since they will have the least time to meet the new requirements.
Hydrogen production using electrolyzers and energy from mandatory installations will ensure its fuller utilization “on-site”, will relieve the energy grid, and enable long-term storage of energy in the form of hydrogen.
The produced hydrogen can be used to power vehicles, technological processes and, thanks to the technology of a zero-emission hydrogen-oxygen boiler, also to heat rooms, spaces, and utility water, thus meeting the requirements for energy-efficient heating and cooling systems under the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED). Heating systems are required to gradually increase the share of renewable energy, waste heat, and/or cogeneration, thereby reducing the amount of emissions generated. From 2050, this amount cannot exceed 0 grams/kWh, which means the systems will be completely emission-free.
This can be achieved by the innovative hydrogen boiler we are developing, which, thanks to the use of hydrogen and pure oxygen in the combustion process instead of gas or atmospheric air, will guarantee not only the elimination of CO2 emissions but also NOx, SOx, and dust. In this way, the only products of combustion will be energy and superheated steam.
