Energy performance of buildings
A holistic approach to smart building systems
While a coordinated operation of all building systems can achieve significant energy savings, those systems are too often installed in siloes hindering to unlock the full potential, writes Tom Machinchick.
Banker: ‘Massive positive change’ underway for building renovation
The energy performance contract model can turn energy efficiency renovation of buildings into a truly popular policy objective among politicians in Central and Eastern Europe because it can be done without any use of public money and has no impact on public debt, says Ivan Lesay.
Croatia’s renovation projects can teach us as much as their football
What do Croatia’s football team and its energy efficiency programmes have in common? Experience, skill, tenacity and an inspiring amount of success, writes Adrian Joyce.
Cooling, Europe’s unheralded energy challenge
Heating and cooling takes up half the European Union’s energy consumption but it is often radiators and heaters that hog the spotlight, while air conditioning and fans are sidelined. But the changing climate and economic situation means cooling is set to become far more important.
Higher shares of renewables for higher levels of electrification
A deep decarbonisation of the European economy is doable, but it will rely heavily on an increased uptake of electricity – even if the challenges are very different across the individual use sectors, writes Kristian Ruby.
UK set to ‘dramatically’ miss 2030 energy efficiency targets for homes
The UK will not meet its 2030 goals to boost energy efficiency in its housing stock until the end of the century, new research from think tank IPPR has concluded. EURACTIV's media partner edie.net reports.
‘Primary’ energy efficiency in focus as EU talks near finishing line
Public debate on energy efficiency has tended to focus on savings made by the end-user – whether in buildings or in consumer products like TV sets, lightbulbs, and vacuum cleaners, which have all grabbed headlines.
Why the Paris Agreement requires an ambitious Energy Efficiency Directive
An energy efficiency target of around 35%, combined with a parallel increase in ambition for renewable energies, would allow the EU to halve its emissions by 2030, write Fiona Hall and Brook Riley.
Theresa May unveils plan to halve building energy use by 2030
UK Prime Minister Theresa May vowed to halve energy use from new buildings by 2030, as part of a speech that championed the role science and technology will play in delivering her government's industrial strategy. EURACTIV's media partner edie.net reports.
Deadlocked energy savings talks restart as Bulgarians eye final deal
Bulgaria’s EU presidency wants the European Parliament to put a compromise on the table during fresh talks on energy efficiency tonight (16 May) in order to unlock negotiations and close the file before July. But MEPs and member states still seem far apart on crucial aspects of energy savings.
Energy efficiency is good for climate, consumers and industry – so why undermine it?
The EU Council of Ministers wants to slow down annual obligations on energy savings by quietly introducing a whole new range of “flexibilities” after 2020, some of which are well-hidden in an Annex of the proposed Energy Efficiency Directive, writes Benedek Jávor.
Breaking down the barriers to renewable heating in the UK
Europe is the global leader in renewable heat, but there’s plenty of room for improvement. Being bottom of the class, the UK is a case in point, writes Marcus Franck.
Demand for cooling could outstrip heating as Earth warms
A burgeoning middle class and a warming world will result in energy demand for cooling overtaking that for heating by the middle of the century, researchers have predicted. EURACTIV's partner The Guardian reports.
Buildings renovation: The low hanging fruit for emissions savings
With real estate responsible for over a third of the EU’s CO2 emissions, legislating to improve energy savings in the building stock is a low hanging fruit that our governments would be mad not to pick, argues Eliot Whittington.
Energy-efficient buildings: Why MEPs should ban the staged renovation approach
The staged renovation approach hinders the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive’s target of making buildings highly energy efficient and decarbonised by 2050, as well as Europe’s objective to alleviate energy poverty, warns Dr Yamina Saheb.
‘Invisible’ cement polluters urged to double climate efforts
European producers were singled out among the worst performers in a new environmental ranking of the world’s largest publicly-listed cement companies, published on Monday (9 April).
Breaking the glass ceiling of EU climate policy
The request from EU leaders to see an update of the European Commission's 2050 low-carbon roadmap mandates a higher level of ambition from Europe on meeting climate goals also in 2030, writes Brook Riley.
IEA analyst: A heating and cooling target ‘could make a big difference’
As talks on the EU’s renewable energy rules resume, one of the main talking points is how to decarbonise the heating sector, and deploy technologies like heat pumps and district heating. The International Energy Agency’s Ute Collier told EURACTIV in an interview that the task is complex and difficult.
No ‘one size fits all’ solution to decarbonise heating and cooling
Heating and cooling our homes, businesses and industrial processes makes up half of the EU’s energy demand. Yet, decarbonising the sector is proving a daunting task for which multiple solutions will be needed, industry experts say.
‘Efficiency First’ will deliver – let’s start with renovating our buildings
There is a simple truth about EU climate policy: If it does not put energy efficiency first, it will not meet its objectives cost-effectively. And if it does not try to do that, it may not meet them at all, writes Adrian Joyce.
An inefficient truth
It’s time for the G20 to give energy efficiency the respect it deserves, writes Rachel Kyte.
Don’t be fooled: ‘Efficiency First’ is a necessary discipline
The idea of "Efficiency First" is on the line in ongoing EU talks. Member states must realise that this is no mere slogan but a real necessity, write Jan Rosenow, Richard Cowart and Edith Bayer.
Biomass policy under the spotlight as EU talks kick off
The European Union’s proposed new biomass policy has enough built-in safeguards to ensure it doesn’t lead to additional carbon emissions, an EU official told a EURACTIV event last week, amid warnings that the policy risks making global warming worse by increasing deforestation.