This means over 175,000 commercial spaces need to be retrofitted every year between now and 2030 to raise the standard of all commercial buildings to, and meet an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of B by the end of the decade.
Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard Regulations (MEES) came into effect in April last year, prohibiting landlords from leasing buildings with an EPC rating below E. By 2030, commercial buildings must have an EPC rating of B. If landlords are unable to comply with these requirements, their assets will be unlettable.
The BPF has underlined the size of the challenge facing commercial property landlords in its 2024 carbon manifesto, ‘Building a Sustainable Future’.
The document sets out the action the BPF considers necessary from the next Government to unlock investment into decarbonising buildings and accelerate the transition to a net zero carbon property sector.
The BPF’s recommendations include:
- A comprehensive net zero roadmap for the real estate sector, across all tenures and asset classes.
A Minister for net zero buildings. - Rebalancing gas and electricity costs to speed up the electrification of homes and buildings.
- Clarity on future minimum energy efficiency standards and reform of domestic EPCs.
- Whole life carbon assessments and reporting.
- Zero rating VAT on repairs and maintenance and introducing a ‘Green Super Deduction’.
- Increasing investment in the national grid and speeding up grid connections.
- Properly resourcing planning departments and delivering a ‘retrofit first’ not ‘retrofit only’ approach to sustainable development.
You can download the 11-page manifesto here.
How can Priva improve building energy efficiency?
- Find out the ways in which digitalisation can help companies to decarbonize their buildings in this whitepaper.
- Priva supports regulatory changes that improve building performance – mirroring our own focus on cloud-based solutions that will boost the efficiency and sustainability of commercial buildings.
- We welcome conversations with commercial landlords, commercial real estate operators or managers who want to make their buildings more energy efficient, smarter and intelligent. Drop us line if you’d like to discuss your energy challenges.
