Zero buildings? The business is ready and expects support from the state

Publisher
Pavlína Drbálková
01.03.2012 14:30

Under the direction of the Association of Mineral Insulation Manufacturers, a seminar was held last week on the topic of the market's readiness for new requirements for zero buildings. How will the construction industry react, what support measures are expected, and in which direction will it move in the coming years? Familiar truths were reiterated regarding the benefits of insulation, that CO2 emissions in the production of insulation materials are indeed lower than those that would be released into the atmosphere without them, and that public awareness of low-energy buildings exists, but it is still necessary to continuously convince people.
Moreover, specific demands from investors and representatives of large construction companies were voiced, with opinions presented by the market research company in construction CEEC Research. From the many analyses presented during the presentation, only the most significant will be mentioned in the following text.
The trio of speakers was closed by Jaroslav Maroušek, a representative of the Czech Chamber of Commerce, who focused on legislative tools to achieve energy efficiency in buildings. The discussion covered not only the EU requirements but also specific decrees awaiting approval in the House of Representatives.

According to the Study of Readiness for Energy Efficient Buildings, investors and builders are informed about the tightening requirements for energy efficiency in buildings and are determined to prepare for the changes themselves or to utilize professional chambers. At the same time, they expect the state to introduce supportive financial mechanisms to help people implement energy-efficient measures.

Buildings consume the most energy in Europe (40%), although there are already known and proven measures that can reduce this demand. In the Czech Republic, energy consumption per unit of GDP is fifty percent higher than the average of EU27 countries, which is why the state has set reducing energy consumption as one of the priorities of its energy policy.

EU Strategy on Energy Savings

In its strategy addressing climate change, the EU set three main goals for 2020: reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20%, source 20% of energy consumption from renewable sources, and reduce energy consumption by 20%. How should the 20% reduction in energy consumption manifest specifically? According to the current draft Energy Efficiency Directive, public authorities and institutions should in the future only lease energy-efficient buildings and purchase energy-efficient products and services. They should also begin modernizing their buildings and increasing their energy efficiency at a rate of up to 3% per year for the reduction to be evident.

"Most of the buildings that will exist in 2015 have already been built. New buildings make up only 1% of the housing stock annually, so the greatest potential for savings lies in renovating existing buildings. To achieve the 20-20-20 goals, the pace of renovations should be doubled, meaning at least 3% of buildings should be renovated each year,” stated Ing. arch. Marcela Jonášová, secretary of AVMI.

Both investors and builders consider high-quality insulation of buildings and, with a very slight delay, the installation of quality windows to be the most effective energy-saving measures. Over the past five years, the properties of mineral insulation have improved on average by 15%, and during this time, the thickness of applied insulation materials has increased by 58%.
The fixed costs of insulating a house (installation, scaffolding, cladding, anchoring, plaster) account for more than two-thirds of total insulation costs, and therefore it is generally recommended to install a greater thickness of insulation, which ensures the primary function of the insulation system. The costs increase only slightly with increasing thickness.
At this moment, an interesting question was raised concerning houses that have already been insulated (5-10 years ago) but whose thickness does not meet current and even more so, future requirements. What to do with insulation after insulation? The honest answer was that it is a problem. Most cases involve housing cooperatives that have exhausted their finances and now have no further means to re-insulate. To prevent this, it is said that sufficient information is necessary. Not to hesitate and to invest more in the thickness of the insulating material.

Timeline 2012 - 2020
According to the already adopted European Directive on the energy performance of buildings (so-called EPBD II), member states, including the Czech Republic, should set new requirements for energy performance of buildings starting in 2013 to ensure they are at a cost-optimal level. Subsequently, by December 31, 2018, it will be necessary to ensure that new buildings used and owned by central government authorities are nearly zero-energy buildings, and two years later, all new buildings must have nearly zero energy consumption. The exact definition of what it means to be a nearly zero-energy building lies within the member states' jurisdiction. In the Czech Republic, work is already underway on this definition within the working groups of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. In any case, it is evident that these should be significantly better buildings than those currently common.

"Reducing energy consumption has many different benefits at the societal level. In addition to fulfilling our commitments in the EU, we reduce energy payments and thus dependence on fluctuations in energy prices, reduce both greenhouse gas emissions and many other pollutants in the atmosphere, support domestic production, and reduce dependence on energy imports. A logical synergistic effect is then the support for the stability of our economy. Financial support from the state, which can accelerate the onset of measures to reduce energy consumption, will ultimately pay off most for the state itself," states Jaroslav Maroušek, chairman of the EPBD II working group at the Chamber of Commerce of the Czech Republic.

"The resources invested in motivational areas leading to a reduction in energy consumption in buildings are a good investment for both the state and the entire construction sector," says Libor Urbášek, chairman of AVMI. Miroslav Zámečník, an economist and member of the National Economic Council of the Government, adds: "Small construction has one of the largest multipliers in the entire economy, it can be spread across the republic and even differentiated by regions where employment is needed."

Financial Support from the State or Personal Preparedness?
"We consider it essential to optimally configure the support framework, including advisory, informational, and of course financial support," states Pavel Gebauer, head of the renewable energy support department at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, with whom AVMI and CEEC Research consult their assumptions and conclusions from the discussions. His stance accurately reflects the view of most investors and builders.
Most of them (86%) are aware that significant changes in energy efficiency in buildings are expected by 2020, but the information they have is rather general.
According to four out of five representatives of investors and builders, the implementation of supportive tools from the state will be necessary to increase the efficiency of buildings. They mainly consider direct subsidies for their own savings measures (investor) and favorable loans to be the most effective. To this end, extraordinary state revenues, such as income from emission permits, should be maximally utilized.
Given the unfavorable economic situation and the state budget, it is also appropriate to consider indirect supportive mechanisms, such as tax reliefs.
Investors are willing to invest a maximum of 8% of the total investment value into the process of obtaining subsidy support. The investment in energy-efficient measures should be returned no later than within 11 years.
In general, it can also be assumed that as energy prices rise, the standard of insulation will continue to rise.

The conclusion of this meeting was that people-investors should consider low-energy/passive buildings as the standard. The market and builders are ready. State support may be delayed, but the vigilant EU holds a whip over us. It is just a pity that all this information was shared in a nearly family circle; this debate and others that may follow certainly deserve a wider audience.

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