ICSC to respond to new energy performance proposals

The European Commission has invited the European branch of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) to respond to new proposals for the Energy Performance Building Directive (EPBD) by the end of this year. Speaking on the first day of the ICSC Europe conference in Amsterdam on Wednesday, Stina Soewarta, member of the cabinet of EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs, said the new directive would replace and improve the current EPBD, which was recently launched in Europe with the aim of boosting energy efficiency in buildings and cutting greenhouse emissions by 20% in Europe by 2020.

Soewarta said that the bulk of energy savings in the property sector could be achieved through improvements to air conditioning systems (which account for 19% of CO2 emissions and 14% of energy use), more efficient lightning (26% of energy use, 19% of CO2 emissions) and improved insulation in buildings. The property sector accounts for around 45% of total energy costs in Europe, and is responsible for 38% of greenhouse emissions on the European Continent. Soewarta pointed out that the refurbishment of existing buildings formed the biggest challenge for creating more sustainable buildings as they account for a far greater amount of leasable area than new developments.