Agricultural buildings can be excluded from an EU directive which aims to help reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the building sector.
The European Parliament adopted the revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, as it was already agreed upon with the EU Council, today (Tuesday, March 12).
Buildings in the EU are responsible for 40% of energy consumption across the union and 36% of GHG emissions, according to the European Commission.
In December 2021, the European Commission published its proposal for a revision of the directive to reflect higher ambition and a more pressing need for climate and social action.
Energy efficiency of buildings
Dublin Green Party MEP, Ciarán Cuffe is the lead negotiator on behalf of the European Parliament in negotiations on the directive with the council and the commission.
The directive will modernise Europe’s building stock by introducing minimum energy performance standards to progressively improve energy performance, he said and added:
“This law is going to help people to save money on their energy bills and take people out of energy poverty, while reducing emissions from our buildings and cutting demand for fossil fuel imports.”
The revised directive, which was adopted by 370 votes to 199, with 46 abstentions, will now have to be formally endorsed by the Council of Ministers in order to become law.
Member states may decide not to apply minimum energy performance standards to the following categories of agricultural buildings:
- Non-residential agricultural buildings with low energy demand; and
- Non-residential agricultural buildings which are used by a sector covered by a national sectoral agreement on energy performance.
Buildings protected for their special architectural or historical merit, temporary buildings, and churches and places of worship can also be excluded from the new rules.
New rules
The revision sets out that all new buildings should be zero-emissions as of 2030, and new buildings occupied or owned by public authorities should be zero-emissions as of 2028.
When calculating emissions, member states will take into account the life-cycle global warming potential of a building, including the production and disposal of construction products.
For residential buildings, member states will have to put in place measures to ensure a reduction in the average primary energy used of at least 16% by 2030 and 20-22% by 2035.
Member states have to renovate the 16% worst-performing non-residential buildings by 2030, and the worst-performing 26% by 2033 through minimum energy performance requirements.
If technically and economically suitable, member states have to deploy solar installations in public and non-residential buildings, depending on their size, and all new residential buildings by 2030.
Member states also have to outline how they will adopt measures to decarbonise heating systems, with a view to phasing out fossil fuels in heating and cooling by 2040.
Subsidising stand-alone fossil fuel boilers will be prohibited as of 2025. Financial incentives will still be possible for hybrid heating systems that use a considerable share of renewable energy.