Focus on EPBD and EU policy

After the publication of EPBD-2024 many actions started. The EU Commission organised the preparation of EPBD guidance documents and delegated acts as mentioned in the EPBD. Guidance documents that should help the Member States and their national stakeholders to interpret the EPBD in a correct way. EU directives are policy documents which content is a compromise agreed by MS’s, European Parlement, EU Council and Commission. This process doesn’t guarantee a fully unambiguous text that also should be fully in line with the EPB standards. It is therefore very relevant that the EPBD mentioned that further guidance documents and delegated acts must be developed to support correct implementation in the MS’s.

The EPBD allows MS’s a level of flexibility in implementing the EPBD via their national regulation, the subsidiarity principle [1]. This is also facilitated by the current set of EPB standards (the annex A/B approach). The building and HVAC industry needs an EU harmonised approach in assessing the energy performance of buildings and the impact of their products and systems on the assessed EP. Their products and systems shall be awarded in the same way throughout Europe and beyond, if not, artificial barriers of trade will cause higher prices and less cost-effective energy saving measures. As cost-effectiveness is mentioned in the EPBD this is a real concern.

It is expected that this summer 2025 all EPBD guidance documents will be published by the EU Commission. These documents aim to provide guidance to MSs on the transposition of the EPBD. Contributing to better understanding and to facilitating a more uniform and coherent application in EU. Guidance documents reflect also the result of the communication on interpretation issues between the Commission, MS’s and relevant experts and stakeholders. Ms’s may publish national guidelines to support their national implementation. These guidelines are expected to be developed in cooperation with national stakeholder groups. REHVA EUPAG group could help the REHVA members to support a harmonised approach.

In this REHVA Journal attention is given to issues that are expected to be covered by these guidance documents. Articles on Zero Emission Buildings (ZEB) and IEQ, on phasing our fossil fuel boilers which seems not that straight forward. The application of Low Temperature Heating systems and how it improves the HP system efficiency. Attention is paid to subsidy schemes and EPBD and also to two new CEN Workshop Agreements (CWA’s) on SRI and EPC’s.

The REHVA news section includes an important article from Johann Zirngibl where he presents the REHVA EUPAG group. “European Directives and their national transpositions strongly impact the daily professional practice of HVAC professionals. These legal frameworks should take into account the competence and experience of the impacted professionals.” This article reports on the activity of REHVA’s new policy and advocacy support, the EUPAG group.

I sincerely hope to meet you all in Milano 4-6 June at our CLIMA 2025 conference on decarbonized, healthy and energy conscious buildings in future climates.