On Tuesday 12th of March, the European Parliament in its plenary session in Strasbourg adopted with 370 positive votes, 199 negative votes and 46 abstentions the recast of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).
REHVA President Catalin Lungu emphasize that "the success of the EPBD voting can be attributed not only to the European Trialogue but also to the collaborative spirit among European Associations who have been stressing on the same voice the urgent need to address climate change and promote energy efficiency."
The next step is the Council in April, for which we also hope and support a positive outcome. Seventeen European associations signed together with REHVA the joint statement below. We hereby also pay tribute to all the organisations and colleagues at both EU and national level that have been working relentlessly and have supported the EPBD recast during the past few years.
REHVA EUPAG actions will now be focussing on the European elections (June 2024) and the upcoming new institutional cycle with the drafting of a Manifesto, a public declaration of policy and aims of REHVA's Member Associations, Supporters and Associate Organisations. In paralel and in due time, EUPAG will turn towards EPBD's implementation phase by cooperating with the Commission (support in drafting guidelines, delegated acts), the Member States and the overall stakeholder community.
We, the undersigned organisations, express our gratitude to the colleagues in the European Parliament for having adopted the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) recast on 12 March 2024 and herewith further emphasize that we support the text because it will introduce important new provisions to put the building stock on track with the EU 2050 energy and climate targets.
To bring its contribution to reach such objectives, the building sector requires an ambitious but practical and unambiguous European legal framework that considers the needs of building owners and occupants, and the competitiveness of the construction ecosystem, including construction SMEs and crafts, as well as technical building systems, with sufficient freedom for transposition and timely implementation at the Member State level. The European Parliament and Council of the European Union have reached during the trilogue negotiations a balanced agreement that would deliver important benefits to achieve the objectives set.
The approval of the final EPBD recast text by the Member States in April 2024 will allow them, and the EU at large, to make significant steps ahead towards an energy efficient, environmentally friendly and healthy building stock.