Log in
Search
A Renovation Wave for Europe
The European Commission published its Renovation Wave for Europe strategy in October 2020. The strategy aims to help improve the energy performance of buildings and deliver on the European Green Deal ambitions, as buildings are responsible for about 40% of the EU's energy consumption, and for 36% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the EU.
The Strategy provides a roadmap of EU targets to be achieved by 2030 and is accompanied by a series of policy measures. The main targets are:
- 60% reduction in buildings’ GHG emissions;
- 14% reduction in buildings’ final energy consumption;
- 18% reduction of the energy consumption for heating and cooling (H&C);
- Double the renovation rate by 2030.
The last target means achieving an annual renovation rate of 2% of the building stock (both residential and non-residential) each year (where renovation works address energy performance of buildings), instead of the 1% currently. This would amount to 35 million building units being renovated by 2030, according to the European Commission.
The Renovation Wave prioritised action in seven areas:
- Strengthening framework to incentivise renovations;
- Ensuring adequate and well-targeted funding;
- Increasing the capacity to prepare and implement projects;
- Promoting renovation interventions for smart buildings;
- Making the construction ecosystem fit to deliver sustainable renovation;
- Using renovation as a lever to address energy poverty and access to healthy housing;
- Promoting the decarbonisation of heating and cooling.
According to the Impact Assessment for the 2030 climate target, ‘the share of renewables and waste heat would have to increase to 38-42%’ by 2030 with a replacement rate of heating equipment of 4% per year.
Besides, the strategy will rely on ‘best practices’ observed across countries, as well as some key principles, such as energy efficiency first, affordability, decarbonisation and renewablez integration, and a life-cycle approach.
The means
To achieve the 2% renovation rate, the strategy plans to ‘break down existing barriers throughout the renovation chain – from the conception of a project to its funding and completion - with a set of policy measures, funding tools and technical assistance instruments.’ Concretely, some ‘lead actions’ are highlighted, notably to tackle the following:
Regulatory framework
The Commission under this frameworkaimed to revamp regulations and standards for buildings, notably by introducing mandatory minimum energy performance standards for existing buildings via the review of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, or EPBD, which was adopted in December 2023. Additionally, the extension of energy audits requirements to ‘larger and more complex non-residential buildings’ (i.a. hospitals, schools, offices, etc.) is another key regulatory development in this area.
As part of the Fit for 55 package, the co-legislators adopted revisions of key legislative texts, such as the Renewable Energy Directive, EU Emissions Trading System Directive and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. These include several changes that build on the Renovation Wave. As part of the EU ETS revision, buildings, along with fuels for road transport, are included in a separate self-standing emissions trading system (ETS II) from 2027. With the revision of the Renewable Energy Directive, the a comprehensive framework for the deployment of RES across all sectors is set, especially in those areas where progress has been slow, such as buildings. Lastly, the revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive set out the vision and tools to achieve zero emissions by 2050 in buildings.
Funding
The Strategy outlined that €275 billion of additional investments per year are needed to reach the mentioned targets by 2030. To handle part of this, funding incentives consist in available funds from the Recovery and Resilience Facility (i.a. via the flagships ‘Renovate’ and ‘Power Up’ providing guidance to Member States on reforms and funding), and enhanced access to private financing. Key tools are also available to finance buildings renovaiton, such as the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF), the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), Horizon Europe, ELENA facility.
What’s in it for hydrogen?
Via the Renovation Wave communication, the Commission basically gave a political frame to revise the legislations of EED, EPBD, Ecodesign Directive, RED III and the EU ETS. It placed its climate and energy policies for buildings under a context and strategic vision under the scope of the European Green Deal. It explains the objectives and brings together the mobilised means to act.
Looking at heating fuels and technologies, hydrogen and fuel cells are not mentioned in the strategy. Yet, there is not any particular focus and details on specific priority technologies to decarbonise Heating & Cooling in buildings in the strategy, rightly utilising a technology neutral approach (‘electrification’ is not mentioned either and ‘heat pump’ only once, for example).
Decarbonisation of heating and cooling is a priority area, with an increased share of renewable heat and an increased replacement rate of heat equipment foreseen. Integration of renewables is therefore a key focus – the synergies offered by linking H&C and transport infrastructure is underlined. Indeed, a link is drawn between buildings’ renovation and deployment of e-mobility infrastructure. There, smart meters and digitalisation can help to integrate energy use in buildings and transport, and to ‘make residents active consumers’ by producing and selling locally produced energy, detailed Commissioner Simson, who also recalled the one-million public recharging points target by 2025, without adding any concrete measures in this regard.
Links to the original document and additional information:
A Renovation Wave for Europe
Directive 2023/2413 on the promotion of energy from renewable sources
Proposal for a Directive on the energy performance of buildings (recast)
Provisional agreement on the Directive on the energy performance of buildings (recast)
