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Deep renovation should be standard and included in EPBD – study

(eceee news, 19 Nov 2021) A new study by the BPIE, investigates what deep renovation is and ways to define it. Deep renovation needs a legally binding, clear and ambitious definition at EU level and holds multiple other benefits, ranging from microeconomic to wider social benefits.

The study is based on an overview of national examples and existing concepts arguing that all renovation scenarios should consider deep renovations to be the majority. BPIE argues that deep renovation should minimise energy needs by capturing the full potential of the building to reduce its energy demand, while delivering adequate comfort levels to occupants.

The Renovation Wave sets the objective to at least double the annual energy renovation rate by 2030 as well as to foster deep energy renovations. According to the BPIE, clarity is missing from the current EU legal framework, where no definition of deep renovation can be found. There is no climate-neutrality possible by 2050 without full decarbonising the buildings sector.

In the wake of COP26, deep renovation is a concrete way for the EU to secure its position as a global climate leader, while simultaneously supporting vulnerable citizens and alleviating rising fuel prices, BPIE claims. While the current annual deep renovation rate stands at only 0.2% on average in the EU, deep energy renovation rate should reach 3% per year as soon as possible before 2030 and be maintained up to 2050.

Deep renovation of buildings, must get a legally binding definition at EU level and become standard practice in order to reach climate goals and combat rising fuel prices and energy poverty, argues BPIE. This should be included in the European Commission’s revised EPBD, expected before the end of 2021. Deep renovation definition and standards must therefore be introduced into EPBD Article 2 and applied whenever any building undergoes renovation.

“Deep renovation should be the gold standard for any investment decision to upgrade a building, and we need a legal definition to create confidence in the renovation market,” says Oliver Rapf, Executive Director at BPIE.

According to the report, the remaining low energy demand should be supplied by renewables, progressively increasing their share within the total supply, towards reaching 100% at the end of the deep renovation process and by 2050 latest.

BPIE proposes a clear and forward-looking definition of deep renovation and urges the EU to recalibrate its renovation ecosystem of policy, advisory and financing measures in order to trigger the shift to a ‘deep renovation first’ approach, embedding deep renovation into the EPBD and ensuring a consistent approach across all policies.

View the report here