A new report, launched today by the Buildings Institute Performance Europe (BPIE) finds that no EU Member States are on track to reaching the 2050 climate targets.
Based on the analysis of eight LTRS strategies, the report highlights that most LTRS miss the Energy performance of buildings directive target of a highly efficient and the decarbonised building stock, and none of the strategies are in line with the EU's objective of achieving climate-neutrality by 2050. This fundamental misalignment between Member States’ LTRS and the EU Climate Targets points to a clear need for the European Commission to propose a full revision of the directive.
According to the analysis, energy-efficient buildings seem to be of less strategic importance to Member States than decarbonising the energy supply; most strategies appear to prioritise decarbonising energy supply systems and reducting GHG emissions rather than improving overall efficiency of buildings, thereby reducing energy consumption in the sector.
BPIE gives a bold message as to the level of ambition required from the European Commission (and Member States) in the upcoming "Fit for 55" legislative package, and calls for Member States to increase their long-term renovation targets to 100% decarbonisation of their building stock, in line with the climate-neutrality objective. The report also provides a clear call to action for the European Commission to assess all Member States’ long-term renovation strategies in accordance with the climate-neutrality objective by 2050: this would mean a higher decarbonisation objective and stronger emphasis on reducing the energy demand in the buildings sector. The Commission should also guide Member States accordingly for their LTRS update which should take place earlier than defined in the current Directive.
BPIE also calls for the Renovation Wave strategy to be adjusted in order to deliver a 3% annual deep renovation rate by 2030 and to fully align the building sector with the climate neutrality objective of 2050.
