Negotiations Who will need to renovate the house (and when will it be mandatory): EU directive for final approval The European Parliament and the EU Council are negotiating the definitive text of the provision that will force a series of renovations of the house. Buildings of member countries, let’s see how

The directive on the energy performance of European buildings, called the Green Homes Directive, is reaching its final stages. The European Parliament and the EU Council are negotiating the final text of the provision, part of Fit for 55, that will mandate a series of retrofits to make member states’ buildings more energy efficient and therefore less polluting. , the EU decarbonisation programme, which aims to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55 percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. This is a highly opposed measure in Italy and is strongly opposed by Confbuilding, whose chairman is Giorgio Spaziani Testa. , asked the government of Giorgia Meloni to stop the directive, calling it “a provision full of ideology and fanaticism”.

Revision

The “Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings” is a revision of an existing directive on the energy performance of buildings, aiming to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption in the sector by 2030. There are so many inefficient buildings that frighten many Italians who fear having to spend large sums of money to bring their homes up to standard. Today (October 12), a definitive Trio Talk is planned for the evening; The negotiation between the Council and Parliament, mediated by the Commission, is in an ‘open-ended’ format, meaning that negotiations will continue until (potentially) an outcome is found. The 10 most important articles of the text will be discussed and therefore the success of the negotiations will mean that there will be little left for the text to be finalized. Negotiators in the room will include Italian MP Northern League member Isabella Tovaglieri, who is part of the team led by Irish Green Ciaran Cuffe. But let’s see what the main points of this reform are.

new buildings

First of all, according to the proposal, all newly constructed buildings will have to be zero-emission from 2028, according to the Chamber, and from 2030, according to the EU Council. To the Chamber and from 2028 to the Council. It is not difficult to imagine that, as is often the case, mediation will be found right in the middle, thus setting two targets for 2029 and 2027 respectively.

Old buildings will be renovated

The part that relates to existing buildings and therefore needs to be renewed is more problematic. In the opinion of Parliament, residential buildings will need to achieve energy performance class E by at least 2030 and energy performance class D by 2033. Reaching the same classes for non-residential buildings and public buildings should occur slightly earlier: 2027 (E) and 2030 (D), respectively. Here the distances with the Member States are greater and even concern the entire structure of the measure. The EU Council is calling for residential buildings to achieve energy class D by 2033, and at a slower pace to higher standards by 2040 and 2050, based on national trajectories to be determined by various governments. Non-residential buildings will be required to comply with maximum energy performance thresholds reaching below 15% by 2030 and 25% by 2034. The outcome of mediation between the two institutions is uncertain, but what is certain is that times will certainly change. This will give states and citizens more time to adjust.

Which buildings are we talking about?

It should be underlined that when a new tenant enters, the building is sold or renewed, interventions that increase energy performance (for example, insulation work or renewal of the heating system) must be made. This means that the renovation of a house where you live with your family and do not intend to leave or renovate for other reasons will theoretically not be necessary. At least until then, of course. The problem for Italy is that, according to estimates, approximately 60 percent of buildings do not have an APE energy identity certificate, as our country lags far behind other member countries in this regard and this lack of assessment could create an additional burden. For our country, which will have to conduct a kind of ‘population census’. According to Enea data, approximately 86 percent of residential buildings are in energy classes D and lower, and approximately 60 percent are in energy classes F and G, the two worst classes.

Exemptions

There are a number of exemptions in the text. Member states will have the right to exclude protected buildings due to their special architectural or historical value, technical buildings, churches and places of worship. In this way, Italy will be able to preserve buildings that, although energy inefficient, are part of our nation’s architectural heritage. Additionally, all homes used solely for holidays would be exempt, as the proposal states that the directive should not cover flats “intended to be used for less than four months of the year”. It is not yet clear whether the obligations will be expanded to include public housing. Parliament wants to propose an exemption if renovations lead to an increase in rents greater than any savings on energy bills; This would be economically undesirable. for tenants.

Who pays?

The most controversial point is who will bear the cost of this massive restructuring effort that will affect all of Europe. Since the directive does not specify who will be responsible for the investment, it is up to the States to decide whether the investment will be supported by public funds. However, the directive envisages a number of financial aid and tax reductions. The text approved by the Strasbourg Parliament calls for the 110 billion community fund already allocated by Brussels to be redirected to help support renovation costs, especially for less wealthy families. But this means it will not be fresh money, but money that governments will have to take from other European policies. In short, our country may have to give another Super Bonus, which puts a serious burden on the state coffers, especially if the implementation periods of the directive are not extended.

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Source: Today IT

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