Directive (EU) 2024/1275 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 April 2024 on the energy performance of buildings (recast) (Text with EEA relevance)
Directive (EU) 2024/1275 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 24 April 2024on the energy performance of buildings(recast)(Text with EEA relevance)THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 194(2) thereof,Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social CommitteeOJ C 290, 29.7.2022, p. 114.,Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the RegionsOJ C 375, 30.9.2022, p. 64.,Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedurePosition of the European Parliament of 12 March 2024 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 12 April 2024.,Whereas:(1)Directive 2010/31/EU of the European Parliament and of the CouncilDirective 2010/31/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 May 2010 on the energy performance of buildings (OJ L 153, 18.6.2010, p. 13). has been substantially amended several timesSee Annex IX, Part A.. Since further amendments are to be made, that Directive should be recast in the interests of clarity.(2)Under the Paris AgreementOJ L 282, 19.10.2016, p. 4., adopted in December 2015 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (the "Paris Agreement"), its Parties have agreed to hold the increase in the global average temperature well below 2 oC above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1,5oC above pre-industrial levels. Reaching the objectives of the Paris Agreement is at the core of the Commission communication of 11 December 2019 entitled "The European Green Deal" (the "European Green Deal"). The Union committed itself to reducing the Union’s economy-wide net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55 % by 2030 below 1990 levels in the updated nationally determined contribution submitted to the UNFCCC Secretariat on 17 December 2020.(3)As announced in the European Green Deal, the Commission presented its Renovation Wave strategy in its communication of 14 October 2020 entitled "A Renovation Wave for Europe — greening our buildings, creating jobs, improving lives". The Renovation Wave strategy contains an action plan with concrete regulatory, financing and enabling measures, with the objective to at least double the annual energy renovation rate of buildings by 2030 and to foster deep renovations, resulting in 35 million building units renovated by 2030 and the creation of jobs in the construction sector. The revision of Directive 2010/31/EU is necessary as one of the vehicles by which to deliver on the Renovation Wave. It will also contribute to delivering on the New European Bauhaus initiative, presented in the Commission communication of 15 September 2021 entitled "New European Bauhaus — Beautiful, Sustainable, Together" and the European mission on climate-neutral and smart cities. The New European Bauhaus initiative is intended to foster a more inclusive society that promotes the wellbeing of all in keeping with the historical Bauhaus, which contributed to social inclusion and the well-being of citizens, in particular worker communities. By facilitating training, networks and providing guidelines to architects, students, engineers and designers under the principles of sustainability, aesthetics and inclusion, the New European Bauhaus initiative can empower local authorities to develop innovative and cultural solutions in creating a more sustainable built environment.(4)Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2021/1119 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 June 2021 establishing the framework for achieving climate neutrality and amending Regulations (EC) No 401/2009 and (EU) 2018/1999 ("European Climate Law") (OJ L 243, 9.7.2021, p. 1). enshrines in Union law the target of economy-wide climate neutrality by 2050 at the latest and establishes a binding Union domestic reduction commitment of net greenhouse gas emissions (emissions after the deduction of removals) of at least 55 % below 1990 levels by 2030.(5)The "Fit for 55" legislative package, announced by means of the Commission communication of 19 October 2020 entitled "Commission Work Programme 2021 — A Union of vitality in a world of fragility", aims to implement those objectives. That package covers a range of policy areas including energy efficiency, renewable energy, land use, land change and forestry, energy taxation, effort sharing, emissions trading and alternative fuels infrastructure. The revision of Directive 2010/31/EU is an integral part of that package. Building on the "Fit for 55" legislative package, the REPowerEU plan contained in the Commission communication of 18 May 2022 entitled "REPowerEU Plan" put forward an additional set of actions to save energy, diversify supplies, quickly substitute fossil fuels by accelerating Europe’s clean energy transition and smartly combine investments and reforms. It contained new legislative proposals and targeted recommendations by which to increase ambition with regard to energy efficiency and savings. The communication also referred to taxation measures as means to provide incentives for energy savings and reduce fossil fuel consumption.(6)Buildings account for 40 % of final energy consumption in the Union and 36 % of its energy-related greenhouse gas emissions while 75 % of Union buildings are still energy-inefficient. Natural gas plays the largest role in the heating of buildings, accounting for around 39 % of energy consumption used for space heating in the residential sector. Oil is the second most important fossil fuel for heating, accounting for 11 % and coal accounts for around 3 %. Therefore, reduction of energy consumption, in line with the "energy efficiency first" principle as laid down in Article 3 of Directive (EU) 2023/1791 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilDirective (EU) 2023/1791 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 September 2023 on energy efficiency and amending Regulation (EU) 2023/955 (OJ L 231, 20.9.2023, p. 1). and defined in Article 2, point (18), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action, amending Regulations (EC) No 663/2009 and (EC) No 715/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Directives 94/22/EC, 98/70/EC, 2009/31/EC, 2009/73/EC, 2010/31/EU, 2012/27/EU and 2013/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, Council Directives 2009/119/EC and (EU) 2015/652 and repealing Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 328, 21.12.2018, p. 1). and the use of energy from renewable sources in the buildings sector constitute important measures needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy poverty in the Union. Reduced energy consumption and an increased use of energy from renewable sources, especially solar energy, also have a key role to play in reducing the Union’s energy dependency on fossil fuels overall and on imports especially, promoting security of energy supply in line with the objectives set out in the REPowerEU plan, fostering technological developments and in creating opportunities for employment and regional development, in particular in islands, rural areas and off-grid communities.(7)Buildings are responsible for greenhouse gas emissions before, during and after their operational lifetime. The 2050 vision for a decarbonised building stock goes beyond the current focus on operational greenhouse gas emissions. The whole-life-cycle emissions of buildings should therefore progressively be taken into account, starting with new buildings. Buildings are a significant material bank, being repositories for resources over many decades, and the design options and choices of materials largely influence the whole-life-cycle emissions both for new buildings and renovations. The whole-life-cycle performance of buildings should be taken into account not only in new construction, but also in renovations through the inclusion of policies for the reduction of whole-life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions in Member States’ national building renovation plans.(8)Minimising the whole-life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of buildings requires resource efficiency and circularity. This can also be combined with turning parts of the building stock into a temporary carbon sink.(9)The global warming potential (GWP) over a building’s whole life cycle indicates the building’s overall contribution to emissions that lead to climate change. It brings together greenhouse gas emissions embodied in construction products with direct and indirect emissions from the use stage. A requirement to calculate the life-cycle GWP of new buildings therefore constitutes a first step towards increased consideration of the whole-life-cycle performance of buildings and a circular economy.(10)Buildings are responsible for about half of primary fine particulate matter (PM2,5) emissions in the Union that cause premature death and illness. Improving the energy performance of buildings can and should reduce pollutant emissions at the same time, in accordance with Directive (EU) 2016/2284 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilDirective (EU) 2016/2284 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2016 on the reduction of national emissions of certain atmospheric pollutants, amending Directive 2003/35/EC and repealing Directive 2001/81/EC (OJ L 344, 17.12.2016, p. 1)..(11)Measures to improve further the energy performance of buildings should take into account climatic conditions, including adaptation to climate change, local conditions as well as the indoor climate and cost-effectiveness. Those measures should not affect other requirements concerning buildings such as accessibility, fire safety and seismic safety and the intended use of the building.(12)The energy performance of buildings should be calculated on the basis of a methodology, which may be differentiated at national and regional level. That methodology should include, in addition to thermal characteristics, other factors that play an increasingly important role such as urban heat island effect, heating and air-conditioning installations, the use of energy from renewable sources, building automation and control systems, heat recovery from exhaust air or waste water, system balancing, smart solutions, passive heating and cooling elements, shading, indoor environmental quality, adequate natural light and design of the building. The methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings should be based not only on the season in which heating or air-conditioning is required, but should cover the annual energy performance of a building. It should take into account existing European standards. The methodology should ensure the representation of actual operating conditions and enable the use of metered energy to verify correctness and for comparability, and should be based on monthly, hourly or sub-hourly calculation intervals. In order to encourage the use of on-site renewable energy, and in addition to the common general framework, Member States should take the necessary measures to the effect that the benefits of maximising the use of on-site renewable energy, including for other uses, such as electric vehicle recharging points, are recognised and accounted for in the calculation methodology.(13)Member States should set minimum energy performance requirements for buildings and building elements with a view to achieving the cost-optimal balance between the investments involved and the energy costs saved throughout the life cycle of the building, without prejudice to the right of Member States to set minimum energy performance requirements which are more energy-efficient than cost-optimal energy efficiency levels. Provision should be made for the possibility for Member States to review regularly their minimum energy performance requirements for buildings in light of technical progress.(14)Two thirds of the energy used for heating and cooling of buildings still comes from fossil fuels. In order to decarbonise the building sector, it is of particular importance to phase out fossil fuel in heating and cooling. Therefore, Member States should indicate their national policies and measures to phase out fossil fuels in heating and cooling in their national building renovation plans. They should strive to phase out stand-alone boilers powered by fossil fuels, and, as a first step, they should not provide, from 2025, financial incentives for the installation of stand-alone boilers powered by fossil fuels, with the exception of those selected for investment, before 2025, under the Recovery and Resilience Facility established by Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 February 2021 establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility (OJ L 57, 18.2.2021, p. 17)., and the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund under Regulation (EU) 2021/1058 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2021/1058 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 on the European Regional Development Fund and on the Cohesion Fund (OJ L 231, 30.6.2021, p. 60).. It should still be possible to provide financial incentives for the installation of hybrid heating systems with a considerable share of renewable energy, such as the combination of a boiler with solar thermal or with a heat pump. A clear legal basis for the banning of heat generators on the basis of their greenhouse gas emissions, the type of fuel used or to the minimum part of renewable energy used for heating at building’s level should support national phase-out policies and measures.(15)Domestic hot-water generation is one of the main sources of energy consumption for high-performing buildings. In most cases, that energy is not recovered. Harvesting heat from domestic hot-water drains in buildings could be a simple and cost-effective way to save energy.(16)Energy performance requirements for technical building systems should apply to whole systems, as installed in buildings, and not to the performance of standalone components, which fall under the scope of product-specific regulations under Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the CouncilDirective 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for energy-related products (OJ L 285, 31.10.2009, p. 10).. When setting energy performance requirements for technical building systems, Member States should use, where available and appropriate, harmonised instruments, in particular testing and calculation methods and energy efficiency classes developed under measures implementing Directive 2009/125/EC and Regulation (EU) 2017/1369 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2017/1369 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2017 setting a framework for energy labelling and repealing Directive 2010/30/EU (OJ L 198, 28.7.2017, p. 1)., with a view to ensuring consistency with related initiatives and minimise, to the extent possible, potential fragmentation of the market. Energy-saving technologies with very short payback periods, such as the installation or replacement of thermostatic control valves or heat recovery from exhaust air or waste water, are given insufficient consideration today. When estimating the effective rated output for heating systems, air-conditioning systems, systems for combined space heating and ventilation, or systems for combined air-conditioning and ventilation systems, in a given building or building unit the effective rated output of different generators of the same system should be added together.(17)This Directive is without prejudice to Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The term "incentive" as used in this Directive should not therefore be interpreted as constituting State aid.(18)The Commission should lay down a comparative methodology framework for calculating cost-optimal levels of minimum energy performance requirements. A review of that framework should enable the calculation of both energy and emission performance and should take into account environmental and health externalities, as well as the extension of the emission trading system and carbon prices. Member States should use that framework to compare the results with the minimum energy performance requirements which they have adopted. Should there be significant discrepancies, namely discrepancies that exceed 15 %, between the calculated cost-optimal levels of minimum energy performance requirements and the minimum energy performance requirements in force, Member States should justify the difference or plan appropriate steps to reduce the discrepancy. The estimated economic life cycle of a building or building element should be determined by Member States, taking into account current practices and experience in defining typical economic life cycles. Member States should submit to the Commission, on a regular basis, the results of that comparison and the data used to reach those results. Those reports should enable the Commission to assess and report on the progress of Member States in reaching cost-optimal levels of minimum energy performance requirements.(19)Major renovations of existing buildings, regardless of their size, provide an opportunity to take cost-effective measures to enhance energy performance. For reasons of cost-effectiveness, it should be possible to limit the minimum energy performance requirements to the renovated parts that are most relevant for the energy performance of the building. Member States should be able to define a "major renovation" either in terms of a percentage of the surface of the building envelope or in terms of the value of the building. If a Member State decides to define a major renovation in terms of the value of the building, values such as the actuarial value, or the current value based on the cost of reconstruction, excluding the value of the land upon which the building is situated, could be used.(20)The enhanced climate and energy ambition of the Union requires a new vision for buildings: the zero-emission building, with very low energy demand, zero on-site carbon emissions from fossil fuels and zero or a very low amount of operational greenhouse gas emissions. All new buildings should be zero-emission buildings by 2030, and existing buildings should be transformed into zero-emission buildings by 2050.(21)Where an existing building is altered, it is not considered to be a new building.(22)Different options are available to cover the energy needs of a zero-emission building: energy generated on site or nearby from renewable sources such as solar thermal, geothermal, solar photovoltaics, heat pumps, hydroelectric power and biomass, renewable energy provided by renewable energy communities, efficient district heating and cooling, and energy from other carbon-free sources. Energy derived from combustion of renewable fuels is considered to be energy from renewable sources generated on-site where the combustion of the renewable fuel takes place on-site.(23)Zero-emission buildings can contribute to demand-side flexibility for instance through demand management, electrical storage, thermal storage and distributed renewable generation to support a more reliable, sustainable and efficient energy system.(24)The necessary decarbonisation of the Union building stock requires energy renovation at a large scale: almost 75 % of that building stock is inefficient according to current building standards, and 85 to 95 % of the buildings that exist today will still be standing in 2050. However, the weighted annual energy renovation rate is persistently low at around 1 %. At the current pace, the decarbonisation of the building sector would require centuries. Triggering and supporting building renovation, including a shift towards emission-free heating systems, is therefore a key goal of this Directive. Supporting renovations at district-level, including through industrial or serial type renovations, offers benefits by stimulating the volume and depth of building renovations and will lead to a quicker and cheaper decarbonisation of the building stock. Industrial solutions for construction and building renovation include versatile prefabricated elements providing different functions such as insulation and energy generation.(25)Minimum energy performance standards are the essential regulatory tool by means of which to trigger the renovation of existing buildings on a large scale, as they tackle the key barriers to renovation such as split incentives and co-ownership structures, which cannot be overcome by economic incentives. The introduction of minimum energy performance standards should lead to a gradual phasing out of the worst-performing buildings and a continuous improvement of the national building stock, contributing to the long-term goal of a decarbonised building stock by 2050.(26)Minimum energy performance standards for non-residential buildings should be provided for at Union level and should focus on the renovation of the worst-performing non-residential buildings, which have the highest potential in terms of decarbonisation and extended social and economic benefits and therefore need to be renovated as a priority. In addition, Member States should establish specific timelines for the further renovation of non-residential buildings in their national building renovation plans. Some specific situations justify exemptions for individual non-residential buildings from minimum energy performance standards, in particular the planned demolition of a building or an unfavourable cost-benefit assessment; cases of serious hardship justify an exemption for as long as the hardship persists. Member States should establish stringent criteria for such exemptions in order to avoid a disproportionate share of exempted non-residential buildings. They should communicate those criteria in their national building renovation plans and should compensate for the exempted non-residential buildings via equivalent energy performance improvements in other parts of the non-residential building stock.(27)As regards residential buildings, Member States should have the flexibility to choose the tools by means of which they achieve the required improvement of the residential building stock, such as minimum energy performance standards, technical assistance and financial support measures. Member States should establish a national trajectory for the progressive renovation of the national residential building stock in line with the national roadmap and the 2030, 2040 and 2050 targets contained in the Member State’s national building renovation plan and with the transformation of the national building stock into a zero-emission building stock by 2050. The national trajectories should comply with intermediate, five-year milestones for the decrease in the average primary energy use of the residential building stock, starting in 2030, which ensure similar efforts across Member States.(28)As regards the rest of the national building stock, Member States are free to decide whether they wish to introduce minimum energy performance standards, designed at national level and adapted to national conditions. When reviewing this Directive, the Commission should assess whether the measures established pursuant to this Directive will deliver sufficient progress towards achieving a fully decarbonised, zero-emission building stock by 2050 or whether further measures, such as binding minimum energy performance standards need to be introduced, in particular for residential buildings in order to achieve the five-year milestones.(29)The introduction of minimum energy performance standards should be accompanied by an enabling framework including technical assistance and financial measures, in particular for vulnerable households. Minimum energy performance standards set at national level do not amount to "Union standards" within the meaning of State aid rules, while Union-wide minimum energy performance standards might be considered to constitute such "Union standards". In line with revised State aid rules, Member States may grant State aid to building renovation to comply with the Union-wide energy performance standards until those Union-wide standards become mandatory. Once the standards are mandatory, Member States may continue to grant State aid for the renovation of buildings and building units falling under the Union-wide energy performance standards, provided that the building renovation aims at a higher standard.(30)The EU Taxonomy, established by Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 (OJ L 198, 22.6.2020, p. 13)., classifies environmentally sustainable economic activities across the economy, including for the building sector. Under Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/2139Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/2139 of 4 June 2021 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing the technical screening criteria for determining the conditions under which an economic activity qualifies as contributing substantially to climate change mitigation or climate change adaptation and for determining whether that economic activity causes no significant harm to any of the other environmental objectives (OJ L 442, 9.12.2021, p. 1). (the "EU Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act"), building renovation is considered to be a sustainable activity where it achieves at least 30 % energy savings, complies with minimum energy performance requirements for major renovation of existing buildings, or consists of individual measures related to the energy performance of buildings, such as the installation, maintenance or repair of energy efficiency equipment or of instruments and devices for measuring, regulating and controlling the energy performance of buildings, where such individual measures comply with the established criteria. Building renovation to comply with Union-wide minimum energy performance standards is typically in line with the EU Taxonomy criteria related to building renovation activities.(31)Minimum energy performance requirements for existing buildings and building elements were already contained in the predecessors of this Directive and should continue to apply. While the newly introduced minimum energy performance standards set a minimum level for the energy performance of existing buildings and ensure that renovation of inefficient buildings takes place, minimum energy performance requirements for existing buildings and building elements ensure the necessary depth of renovation when a renovation takes place.(32)There is an urgent need to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels in buildings and to accelerate efforts to decarbonise and electrify their energy consumption. In order to enable the cost-effective installation of solar technologies at a later stage, all new buildings should be "solar-ready", that is, designed to optimise the solar generation potential on the basis of the site’s solar irradiance, enabling the installation of solar technologies without costly structural interventions. In addition, Member States should ensure the deployment of suitable solar installations on new buildings, both residential and non-residential, and on existing non-residential buildings. The large-scale deployment of solar energy on buildings would make a major contribution to shielding more effectively consumers from increasing and volatile prices of fossil fuels, reduce the exposure of vulnerable citizens to high energy costs and result in wider environmental, economic and social benefits. In order to efficiently exploit the potential of solar installations on buildings, Member States should establish criteria for the implementation of, and possible exemptions from, the deployment of solar installations on buildings, in line with the assessed technical and economic potential of the solar energy installations and the characteristics of the buildings covered by this obligation, taking into account the principle of technology neutrality and the combination of solar installations with other roof uses, such as green roofs or other building services installations. In their criteria for the practical implementation of the obligations of deployment of suitable solar energy installation on buildings, Member States should be able to express the relevant threshold in terms of the building’s ground floor area instead of the building’s useful floor area, provided that such a method corresponds to an equivalent installed capacity of suitable solar energy installation on buildings. As the obligation to deploy solar installations on individual buildings depends on the criteria established by Member States, the provisions on solar energy on buildings do not qualify as a "Union standard" within the meaning of State aid rules.(33)It should be possible for Member States to encourage, by means of information, appropriate administrative procedures or other measures that are set out in their national building renovation plans, the deployment of suitable solar energy installations in combination with the renovation of the building envelope, with the replacement of technical building systems or with the installation of recharging infrastructure for electric vehicles, of heat pumps or of building automation and control systems.(34)With regard to mixed-used buildings that include both residential and non-residential building units, Member States may continue to choose whether to treat them as residential or non-residential buildings.(35)Solar photovoltaics and solar thermal technologies, including in combination with energy storage, should be rolled out rapidly to benefit both the climate and the finances of citizens and businesses.(36)The electrification of buildings, such as through the deployment of heat pumps, solar installations, batteries and recharging infrastructure, changes the risks with regard to the fire safety of buildings, which Member States need to address. As regards fire safety in car parks, the Commission should publish non-binding guidance for Member States.(37)To achieve a highly energy-efficient and decarbonised building stock and the transformation of existing buildings into zero-emission buildings by 2050, Member States should establish national building renovation plans which replace the long-term renovation strategies provided for in Article 2a of Directive 2010/31/EU and which are to become an even stronger, fully operational planning tool for Member States, in line with the "energy efficiency first" principle, with a stronger focus on financing and ensuring that appropriately skilled workers are available for carrying out building renovations Member States may take into account the Pact for Skills set out in the communication of the Commission of 1 July 2020 entitled "European Skills Agenda for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience". In their national building renovation plans, Member States should set their own national building renovation targets. In accordance with Article 21, point (b)(7), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 and with the enabling conditions set under Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2021/1060 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, the Cohesion Fund, the Just Transition Fund and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund and financial rules for those and for the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, the Internal Security Fund and the Instrument for Financial Support for Border Management and Visa Policy (OJ L 231, 30.6.2021, p. 159)., Member States should provide an outline of financing measures, as well as an outline of the investment needs and the administrative resources for the implementation of their national building renovation plans.(38)The "energy efficiency first" principle is an overarching principle that should be taken into account across all sectors, going beyond the energy system, at all levels. It is defined in Article 2, point (18), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 as meaning to take utmost account in energy planning, and in policy and investment decisions, of alternative cost-efficient energy efficiency measures to make energy demand and energy supply more efficient, in particular by means of cost-effective end-use energy savings, demand-response initiatives and more efficient conversion, transmission and distribution of energy, whilst still achieving the objectives of those decisions. The principle is therefore equally relevant with regard to improving the energy performance of buildings and is highlighted in the Renovation Wave strategy as one of the key principles for building renovation towards 2030 and 2050. As set out in Commission Recommendation (EU) 2021/1749Commission Recommendation (EU) 2021/1749 of 28 September 2021 on Energy Efficiency First: from principles to practice — Guidelines and examples for its implementation in decision-making in the energy sector and beyond (OJ L 350, 4.10.2021, p. 9)., improved health and well-being are among the major co-benefits of applying the "energy efficiency first" principle to improve the energy performance of buildings.(39)In order to ensure that the Union’s workforce is fully prepared to work actively towards the achievement of the Union climate objectives, Member States should encourage under-represented groups to train and work in the construction and building sector.(40)The national building renovation plans should be based on a harmonised template in order to ensure comparability of plans. In order to ensure the required ambition, the Commission should assess the draft national building renovation plans and issue recommendations to Member States.(41)The national building renovation plans should be closely linked with the integrated national energy and climate plans under Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, and progress in achieving the national targets and the contribution of the national building renovation plans to national and Union targets should be reported as part of the biennial reporting under Regulation (EU) 2018/1999. Considering the urgency to scale up renovation on the basis of solid national building renovation plans, the date for the submission of the first national building renovation plan should be set as early as possible. The subsequent national building renovation plans should be submitted as part of the integrated national energy and climate plans and their updates, which means that the second draft national building renovation plan should be submitted with the second draft integrated national energy and climate plans in 2028.(42)A staged deep renovation can be a solution to address high upfront costs and hassle for the inhabitants that may occur when renovating "in one go" and can allow for less disruptive and more financially feasible renovation measures. However, such staged deep renovation needs to be carefully planned in order to avoid that one renovation step precludes necessary subsequent steps. One-step deep renovation can be more cost-effective and result in fewer emissions linked to the renovation than staged renovation. Renovation passports provide a clear roadmap for staged deep renovations, helping owners and investors plan the best timing and scope for interventions. Therefore, renovation passports should be encouraged and made available, as a voluntary tool, to building owners across all Member States. Member States should ensure that renovation passports do not create a disproportionate burden.(43)There are some synergies between renovation passports and energy performance certificates, in particular as regards the assessment of the current performance of the building and the recommendations for its improvement. In order to make the most of those synergies and reduce costs for building owners, Member States should be able to allow the renovation passport and the energy performance certificate to be drawn up jointly by the same expert and issued together. In the case of such joint drawing up and issuing, the renovation passport should substitute the recommendations in the energy performance certificate. It should, however, remain possible to obtain an energy performance certificate without a renovation passport.(44)Long-term renovation contracts are an important instrument by means of which to stimulate staged renovation. Member States may introduce mechanisms that allow the establishment of long-term renovation contracts over the various stages of staged renovation. Where new and more effective incentives become available during the various stages of the renovation, access to those new incentives may be ensured by allowing beneficiaries to switch to new incentives.(45)The concept of "deep renovation" has not yet been defined in Union law. With a view to achieving the long-term vision for buildings, deep renovation should be defined as a renovation that transforms buildings into zero-emission buildings but, as a first step, as a renovation that transforms buildings into nearly zero-energy buildings. This definition serves the purpose of increasing the energy performance of buildings. A deep renovation for energy performance purposes may also be a prime opportunity to address other aspects such as indoor environmental quality, living conditions of vulnerable households, increasing climate resilience, resilience against disaster risks including seismic resilience, fire safety, the removal of hazardous substances including asbestos, and accessibility for persons with disabilities.(46)In order to foster deep renovation, which is one of the goals of the Renovation Wave strategy, Member States should give enhanced financial and administrative support to deep renovation.(47)Member States should support energy performance upgrades of existing buildings that contribute to achieving an adequate level of indoor environmental quality, removing asbestos and other harmful substances, preventing the illegal removal of harmful substances, and facilitating compliance with existing legislative acts such as Directives 2009/148/ECDirective 2009/148/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work (OJ L 330, 16.12.2009, p. 28). and (EU) 2016/2284Directive (EU) 2016/2284 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2016 on the reduction of national emissions of certain atmospheric pollutants, amending Directive 2003/35/EC and repealing Directive 2001/81/EC (OJ L 344, 17.12.2016, p. 1). of the European Parliament and of the Council.(48)Integrated district or neighbourhood approaches help to increase the cost-effectiveness of the renovations required for buildings that are spatially related such as housing blocks. Such approaches to renovations offer a variety of solutions at a larger scale.(49)Electric vehicles are expected to play a crucial role in the decarbonisation and efficiency of the electricity system, namely through the provision of flexibility, balancing and storage services, especially through aggregation. This potential of electric vehicles to integrate with the electricity system and contribute to system efficiency and further absorption of renewable electricity should be fully exploited. Recharging in relation to buildings is particularly important, since this is where electric vehicles park regularly and for long periods of time. Slow recharging is economical and the installation of recharging points in private spaces can provide energy storage to the related building and integration of smart recharging services and bi-directional recharging and system integration services in general.(50)Combined with an increased share of renewable electricity production, electric vehicles produce less greenhouse gas emissions. Electric vehicles constitute an important component of a clean energy transition on the basis of energy efficiency measures, alternative fuels, renewable energy and innovative solutions for the management of energy flexibility. Building codes can be effectively used to introduce targeted requirements to support the deployment of recharging infrastructure in car parks of residential and non-residential buildings. Member States should aim to remove barriers such as split incentives and administrative complications which individual owners encounter when trying to install a recharging point on their parking space.(51)Pre-cabling and ducting facilitate the rapid deployment of recharging points if and where they are needed. Readily available infrastructure will decrease the costs of installation of recharging points for individual owners and ensure that electric vehicle users have access to recharging points. Establishing requirements for electromobility at Union level concerning the pre-equipping of parking spaces and the installation of recharging points is an effective way to promote electric vehicles in the near future while enabling further development at a reduced cost in the medium to long term. Where technically feasible, Member States should ensure the accessibility of recharging points for persons with disabilities.(52)Smart recharging and bi-directional recharging enable the energy system integration of buildings. Recharging points where electric vehicles typically park for extended periods of time, such as where people park for reasons of residence or employment, are highly relevant to energy system integration, therefore smart recharging functionalities need to be ensured. In situations where bi-directional recharging would assist further penetration of renewable electricity by electric vehicle fleets in transport and the electricity system in general, such functionality should also be made available.(53)Promoting green mobility is a key part of the European Green Deal and buildings can play an important role in providing the necessary infrastructure, not only for recharging of electric vehicles but also for bicycles. A shift to active mobility such as cycling can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport. With the increase in the sale of electrically power-assisted cycles and other L-category vehicle types, referred to in Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 168/2013 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) No 168/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2013 on the approval and market surveillance of two- or three-wheel vehicles and quadricycles (OJ L 60, 2.3.2013, p. 52)., and in order to facilitate the installation of recharging points at a later stage, pre-cabling or ducting should be required in new residential buildings and, where technically and economically feasible, in residential buildings undergoing major renovation. As set out in the communication of the Commission of 17 September 2020 on "Stepping up Europe’s 2030 climate ambition — Investing in a climate-neutral future for the benefit of our people" (the "Climate Target Plan"), increasing the modal shares of clean and efficient private and public transport, such as cycling, will drastically lower pollution from transport and bring major benefits to individual citizens and communities. The lack of bicycle parking spaces is a major barrier to the uptake of cycling, both in residential and non-residential buildings. Union requirements and national building codes can effectively support the transition to cleaner mobility by establishing requirements for a minimum number of bicycle parking spaces, and building bicycle parking spaces and related infrastructure in areas where bicycles are less used can lead to an increase in their use. The requirement to provide bicycle parking spaces should not depend on, or necessarily be linked to, the availability and supply of car parking spaces, which may be unavailable in certain circumstances. Member States should allow an increase in bicycle parking in residential buildings where there are no car parking spaces by providing for the installation of at least two bicycle parking spaces for every residential building unit.(54)The agendas of the Digital Single Market and the Energy Union should be aligned and should serve common goals. The digitalisation of the energy system is quickly changing the energy landscape, from the integration of renewables to smart grids and smart-ready buildings. In order to digitalise the building sector, the Union’s connectivity targets and ambitions for the deployment of high-capacity communication networks are important for smart homes and well-connected communities. Targeted incentives should be provided to promote smart-ready systems and digital solutions in the built environment. This would offer new opportunities for energy savings, by providing consumers with more accurate information about their consumption patterns, and by enabling the system operator to manage the grid more effectively. Member States should encourage the use of digital technologies for analysis, simulation and management of buildings, including with regard to deep renovations.(55)In order to facilitate a competitive and innovative market for smart building services that contributes to efficient energy use and integration of renewable energy in buildings and support investments in renovation, Member States should ensure direct access to building systems’ data by interested parties. To avoid excessive administrative costs for third parties, Member States shall facilitate the full interoperability of services and of the data exchange within the Union.(56)The smart readiness indicator should be used to measure the capacity of buildings to use information and communication technologies and electronic systems to adapt the operation of buildings to the needs of the occupants and the grid and to improve the energy efficiency and overall performance of buildings. The smart readiness indicator should raise awareness among building owners and occupants of the value behind building automation and electronic monitoring of technical building systems and should give confidence to occupants about the actual savings of those new enhanced-functionalities. The smart readiness indicator is particularly beneficial for large buildings with a high energy demand. For other buildings, the scheme for rating the smart readiness of buildings should be optional for Member States.(57)A digital building twin is an interactive and dynamic simulation that reflects the real-time status and behaviour of a physical building. By incorporating real-time data from sensors, smart meters and other sources, a digital building twin provides a holistic view of the building’s performance, including energy consumption, temperature, humidity, occupancy levels, and more and can be used to monitor and manage the building’s energy consumption. Where a digital building twin is available, it should be taken into account, in particular for the smart readiness indicator.(58)Access to sufficient funding is crucial to meet the 2030 and 2050 energy and climate targets. Union financial instruments and other measures have been put into place or adapted with the aim of supporting the energy performance of buildings. The most recent initiatives to increase the availability of financing at Union level include, inter alia, the "Renovate" flagship component of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, in particular the REPowerEU plan, and the Social Climate Fund established by Regulation (EU) 2023/955 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2023/955 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 establishing a Social Climate Fund and amending Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 (OJ L 130, 16.5.2023, p. 1)..(59)Union financial instruments should be used to give practical effect to the objectives of this Directive, without replacing national measures. In particular, due to the scale of the renovation effort needed, they should be used for providing appropriate and innovative means of financing to catalyse investment in the energy performance of buildings. They could play an important role in the development of national, regional and local energy efficiency funds, instruments and mechanisms which deliver such financing possibilities to private property owners, to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and to energy efficiency service companies.(60)Financial mechanisms, incentives and the mobilisation of financial institutions for energy renovations in buildings should play a central role in national building renovation plans and be actively promoted by Member States. Such measures should include encouraging energy-efficient mortgages for certified energy-efficient building renovations, promoting investments for public bodies in an energy-efficient building stock, for example by public-private partnerships or energy performance contracts or reducing the perceived risk of the investments. Information about available funding and financial tools should be made available to the public in an easily accessible and transparent manner. Member States should encourage financial institutions to promote targeted financial products, grants and subsidies to improve the energy performance of buildings housing vulnerable households, as well as to owners in worst-performing buildings with multiple residential building units and buildings in rural areas, and other groups for whom access to financing is difficult. The Commission should adopt a voluntary framework to help financial institutions target and increase lending volumes in accordance with the Union’s decarbonisation ambition and relevant energy targets.(61)Green mortgages and green loans can significantly contribute to transforming the economy and reducing carbon emissions.(62)Financing alone will not deliver on the renovation needs. Together with financing, setting up accessible and transparent advisory tools and assistance instruments such as one-stop shops that provide integrated energy renovation services or facilitators, as well as implementing other measures and initiatives such as those referred to in the Commission’s Smart Finance for Smart Buildings Initiative, is indispensable to provide the right enabling framework and break barriers to renovation. One-stop shops should provide technical assistance and be easily available to all those involved in building renovations, including homeowners and administrative, financial and economic actors, such as SMEs, including microenterprises.(63)Inefficient buildings are often linked to energy poverty and social problems. Vulnerable households are particularly exposed to increasing energy prices as they spend a larger proportion of their budget on energy products. By reducing excessive energy bills, building renovation can lift people out of energy poverty and can also prevent energy poverty. At the same time, building renovation does not come for free, and it is essential to ensure that the social impact of the costs for building renovation, in particular on vulnerable households, is kept in check. The Renovation Wave strategy should leave no one behind and be seized as an opportunity to improve the situation of vulnerable households, and a fair transition towards climate neutrality should be ensured. Therefore, financial incentives and other policy measures should as a priority target vulnerable households, people affected by energy poverty and people living in social housing, and Member States should take measures to prevent evictions because of renovation, such as caps on rent increases. Council Recommendation of 16 June 2022Council Recommendation of 16 June 2022 on ensuring a fair transition towards climate neutrality (OJ C 243, 27.6.2022, p. 35). provides a common framework and shared understanding of comprehensive policies and investments needed for ensuring that the transition is fair.(64)Microenterprises represent 94 % of companies active in the building sector. Together with small enterprises, they amount to 70 % of employment in the construction sector. They supply essential services and jobs locally. However, as microenterprises typically rely on fewer than 10 employees, they have limited resources to comply with regulatory requirements and rules attached to financial support programmes schemes. Energy communities, citizen-led initiatives and local authorities and energy agencies, while indispensable for delivering the Renovation Wave, face the same issues of lower administrative, financial and organisational capacities. This should not hamper the essential role of such entities and should be taken into account in the development of support and training programmes, with sufficient visibility and ease of access. Member States may actively support organisations with lower means with dedicated technical, financial and legal assistance.(65)Energy performance certificates for buildings have been in use since 2002. However, the use of different scales and formats hinders the comparability between different national schemes. Greater comparability of energy performance certificates across the Union facilitates the use of such certificates by financial institutions, thereby steering financing towards buildings with better energy performance and building renovation. The EU Taxonomy relies on the use of energy performance certificates and accentuates the need to improve their comparability. Introducing a common scale of energy performance classes and a common template should ensure sufficient comparability between energy performance certificates across the Union.(66)A number of Member States have recently modified their energy performance certification schemes. In order to avoid disruption, those Member States should have additional time to adapt their schemes.(67)In order to ensure that the energy performance of buildings can be taken into account by prospective buyers or tenants early in the process, buildings or building units which are offered for sale or rent should have an energy performance certificate, and the energy performance class and indicator should be stated in all advertisements. The prospective buyer or tenant of a building or building unit should, in the energy performance certificate, be given correct information about the energy performance of the building and practical advice on improving such performance. The energy performance certificate should also provide information on its primary and final energy consumption, energy needs, renewable energy production, greenhouse gas emissions, life-cycle GWP if available, and, as an option, its indoor environmental quality sensors or controls. The energy performance certificate should contain recommendations for the improvement of the energy performance of the building.(68)The monitoring of the building stock is facilitated by the availability of data collected by digital tools, thereby reducing administrative costs. Therefore, national databases for the energy performance of buildings should be set up, and the information contained therein should be transferred to the EU Building Stock Observatory.(69)Buildings owned or occupied by public bodies should set an example by showing that environmental and energy factors are taken into account. Those buildings should therefore be subject to energy certification on a regular basis. The dissemination to the public of information on the energy performance of buildings should be enhanced by clearly displaying those energy performance certificates, in particular in buildings which are occupied by public bodies and which are frequently visited by the public and certain non-residential buildings, such as town halls, schools, shops and shopping centres, supermarkets, restaurants, theatres, banks and hotels.(70)Recent years have seen a rise in the number of air-conditioning systems in European countries. That creates considerable problems at peak load times, increasing the cost of electricity and disrupting the energy balance. Priority should be given to strategies which enhance the thermal performance of buildings during the summer period. To that end, there should be a focus on measures which avoid overheating, such as shading and sufficient thermal capacity in the building construction, and further development and application of passive cooling techniques, primarily those that improve indoor environmental quality, the micro-climate around buildings and the urban heat island effect.(71)Regular maintenance and inspection of heating systems, ventilation systems and air-conditioning systems by qualified personnel contributes to maintaining their correct adjustment in accordance with the product specification and in that way ensures optimal performance from an environmental, safety and energy point of view. An independent assessment of the entire heating system, ventilation system and air-conditioning system should occur at regular intervals during its lifecycle in particular before its replacement or upgrading. Inspections should address the parts of the systems that are accessible either directly or indirectly through available non-destructive methods. In order to minimise the administrative burden on building owners and tenants, Member States should endeavour to combine inspections and certifications as far as possible. Where a ventilation system is installed, its sizing and its capabilities to optimise its performance under typical or average operating conditions relevant for the specific and current use of the building should also be assessed.(72)Where the system to be inspected is based on fossil fuels, the inspection should include a basic assessment of the feasibility to reduce the on-site use of fossil fuels, for example by integrating renewable energy, changing energy source, or replacing or adjusting the existing systems. In order to reduce the burden on users, that assessment should not be repeated if such recommendations are already documented, in the context of an energy performance certificate, renovation passports, energy audit, recommendations from the manufacturer or other means of providing advice in an equivalent official document or if the replacement of the system is already planned.(73)Some heating systems involve a high risk of carbon monoxide intoxication, depending on the type of heat generator (boiler, heat pump), the type of fuel (coal, oil, biomass, gas) or the location of the heat generator (such as within living spaces or in spaces not properly ventilated). Inspections of such systems provide a good opportunity for managing those risks.(74)A common approach to the energy performance certification of buildings, renovation passports, smart readiness indicators and to the inspection of heating systems and air-conditioning systems, carried out by qualified or certified accredited experts, whose independence is to be guaranteed on the basis of objective criteria, will contribute to a level playing field as regards efforts made in Member States related to energy savings in the buildings sector and will introduce transparency for prospective owners or users with regard to energy performance in the Union property market. Experts should benefit from using test equipment certified in accordance with EN and ISO standards. In order to ensure the quality of energy performance certificates, renovation passports, smart readiness indicators and of the inspection of heating systems and air-conditioning systems throughout the Union, an independent control system should be established in each Member State.(75)A sufficient number of reliable professionals competent in the field of energy renovation should be available to ensure sufficient capacity to carry out quality renovation works at the required scale. Member States should therefore, where appropriate and feasible, put in place certification schemes for integrated renovation works, which require expertise in various building elements or systems such as building insulation, electricity and heating systems and the installation of solar technologies; professionals involved may include designers, general contractors, specialist contractors and installers.(76)Since local and regional authorities are critical for the successful implementation of this Directive, they should be consulted and involved, as and when appropriate in accordance with applicable national law, on planning issues, the development of programmes to provide information, training and awareness-raising, and on the implementation of this Directive at national or regional level. Such consultations may also serve to promote the provision of adequate guidance to local planners and building inspectors to carry out the necessary tasks. Furthermore, Member States should enable and encourage architects, planners and engineers to properly consider the optimal combination of improvements in energy efficiency, use of energy from renewable sources and use of district heating and cooling when planning, designing, building and renovating industrial or residential areas, including building modelling and simulation technologies.(77)Installers and builders are critical for the successful implementation of this Directive. Therefore, an adequate number of installers and builders should, through training and other measures, have the appropriate level of competence for the installation and integration of the energy-efficient and renewable energy technology required.(78)In order to further the aim of improving the energy performance of buildings, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of the adaptation to technical progress of certain parts of the general framework set out in Annex I, in respect of the establishment of a comparative methodology framework for calculating cost-optimal levels of minimum energy performance requirements, in respect of setting out a Union framework for the national calculation of life-cycle GWP with a view to achieving climate neutrality, in respect of a Union scheme for rating the smart readiness of buildings and to effectively encourage financial institutions to increase volumes provided for energy performance renovations by means of a comprehensive portfolio framework for voluntary use by financial institutions. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-MakingOJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.(79)In order to ensure an effective implementation of the provisions laid down in this Directive, the Commission supports Member States through various tools, such as the Technical Support Instrument established by Regulation (EU) 2021/240 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) 2021/240 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 February 2021 establishing a Technical Support Instrument (OJ L 57, 18.2.2021, p. 1). providing tailor-made technical expertise to design and implement reforms, including those aimed at increasing the annual energy renovation rate of residential and non-residential buildings by 2030 and to foster deep energy renovations. The technical support relates to, for example, strengthening of administrative capacity, supporting policy development and implementation, and sharing of relevant best practices.(80)Since the objectives of this Directive, namely improving the energy performance of buildings and reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, due to the complexity of the buildings sector and the inability of the national housing markets to adequately address the challenges of energy efficiency, but can rather, by reason of the scale and the effects of the action, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.(81)The legal basis of this initiative empowers the Union to establish the measures necessary to achieve the objectives of the Union with regard to policy on energy. The proposal contributes to the Union’s energy policy objectives outlined in Article 194(1) TFEU, in particular improving the energy performance of buildings and reducing their greenhouse gas emissions, which contributes to preserving and improving the environment.(82)In accordance with point 44 of the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making, Member States should draw up, for themselves and in the interest of the Union, their own tables, illustrating, as far as possible, the correlation between this Directive and the transposition measures, and make them public. In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents, Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified, in particular following the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Case C-543/17Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 8 July 2019, European Commission v Kingdom of Belgium, C-543/17, ECLI:EU:C:2019:573..(83)The obligation to transpose this Directive into national law should be confined to those provisions which represent a substantive amendment as compared to the earlier Directive. The obligation to transpose the provisions which are unchanged arises under the earlier Directive.(84)This Directive should be without prejudice to the obligations of the Member States relating to the time-limits for the transposition into national law and the dates of application of the Directives set out in Part B of Annex VIII,HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: