About

WHAT IS THE CA EPBD

The Concerted Action EPBD (CA EPBD) addresses the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). It aims to contribute to the reduction of energy use in European buildings, through the exchange of knowledge and best practices in the field of energy efficiency and energy savings between all 28 EU Member States plus Norway.

The EPBD is a cornerstone in EU legislation, and was developed to realise the saving potential in buildings, as they account for almost 40% of the consumption of energy in the EU. Full and efficient transposition of this directive is therefore central in achieving EU energy saving and carbon emission targets. The EPBD is considered as a significant legislative component in EU energy efficiency policy, and was adopted to contribute to the Kyoto commitment, securing energy supply and competitiveness.

The CA EPBD is a joint initiative between the EU Member States and the European Commission. It involves representatives of national ministries or their affiliated institutions who are in charge of preparing the technical, legal and administrative framework for the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive in each EU Member State, plus Norway. The objective is to enhance the sharing of information and experiences from national adoption and implementation of this important European legislation.

The first CA EPBD was launched in 2005 and came to a close in June 2007. A second phase followed immediately after the first CA EPBD, a third phase ran from 2011 to 2015, a fourth one from October 2015 to March 2018, and a fifth phase from 1 May 2018 to 31 October 2022. The current sixth phase started will run until 31 October 2027 and aims to transpose and implement the EPBD amended Directive 2018/844/EU and the revised EPBD currently under negotation.

It is organised around meetings between national teams, regularly bringing together over 120 participants from 29 countries. It is accompanied by other measures to enhance communication, including a web platform and national reports.

The CA EPBD received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. The current, sixth phase of the project, is part-funded by the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) through the Life Programme.

OBJECTIVES

The Concerted Action EPBD aims to support the implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive through the exchange of information and experience among Member States and other participating countries (Norway) with regards to the implementation of the specific European Union legislation and policy on the energy performance of buildings, and in particular with regards to the transposition and implementation of the EPBD, Directive 2018/844/EU, amending Directive 2010/31/EU.

The specific objectives are to:
1. Enhance and structure sharing of information and experience from national implementation and promote good practice in activities required of Member States for implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).
2. Create favourable conditions for faster convergence of national procedures on EPBD-related matters.
3. Develop a direct link with the other two buildings-related Concerted Actions established within the IEE programme: the CA-RES, focussing on transposition and implementation of the Renewable Energy Systems Directive (DIRECTIVE 2009/28/EC); and the CA-EED, focusing on transposition and implementation of the Energy Efficiency Directive (DIRECTIVE 2012/27/EU), and their upcoming revisions, where National Energy Plans include initiatives towards building energy efficiency.
4. Supplement the work of the Article 26 Committee and possible ad-hoc groups on CEN (European Committee for Standardisation) EPB standards and certification exercises.
5. Establish a dialogue with the CEN in the implementation of the 2nd generation standards to support the implementation of the EPBD.
6. Support for European Member States and Norway to use National Energy Plans to report progress on the EPBD implementation.

The CA EPBD will strive to result in a more harmonised approach, improved implementation and actual application of the EPBD in all the countries involved, as well as helping to disseminate best practices between the countries.

PARTICIPANTS

The CA EPBD involves representatives of national ministries or their affiliated institutions who are in charge of preparing the technical, legal and administrative framework for the implementation of the EPBD in each EU Member State, plus Norway and in particular:

ENERGISTYRELSEN | DEA, Denmark
OSTERREICHISCHES INSTITUT FUR BAUTECHNIK | OIB, Austria
CENTRE SCIENTIFIQUE ET TECHNIQUE DE LA CONSTRUCTION | CSTC, Belgium
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY DEVELOPMENT AGENCY | SEDA, Bulgaria
MINISTRY OF ENERGY, COMMERCE, INDUSTRY AND TOURISM| MECIT, Cyprus
MINISTRY OF INDUSTRY AND TRADE | MIT, Czech Republic
BUNDESAMT FUR WIRTSCHAFT UND AUSFUHRKONTROLLE | BAFA, Germany
MAJANDUS JA KOMMUNIKATSIOONIMINISTEERIUM | MEC, Estonia
CENTRE FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES AND SAVING FONDATION | CRES, Greece
INSTITUTO PARA LA DIVERSIFICACION Y AHORRO DE LA ENERGIA | IDAE, Spain
MOTIVA OY | MOTIVA, Finland
MINISTERE DE L’ENVIRONNEMENT, DE L’ENERGIE ET DE LA MER | MTES, France
MINISTARSTVO GRADITELJSTVA I PROSTORNOGA UREDENJA | MGIPU, Croatia
DEBRECENI EGYETEM | DE, Hungary
The sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland | SEAI, Ireland
AGENZIA NAZIONALE PER LE NUOVE TECNOLOGIE, L’ENERGIA E LO SVILUPPO ECONOMICO SOSTENIBILE | ENEA, Italy
STATYBOS PRODUKCIJOS SERTIFIKAVIMO CENTRAS | SPSC, Lithuania
MINISTERE DE L’ECONOMIE ET DU COMMERCE EXTERIEUR | MECE, Luxembourg
EKONOMIKAS MINISTRIJA | ME, Latvia
MINISTRY FOR TRANSPORT, INFRASTRUCTURE AND CAPITAL | MTIC, Malta
MINISTERIE VAN ECONOMISCHE ZAKEN EN KLIMAAT | RVO, Netherlands
NORGES VASSDRAGS- OG ENERGIDIREKTORAT | NVE, Norway
INSTYTUT TECHNIKI BUDOWLANEJ | ITB, Poland
ADENE – AGENCIA PARA A ENERGIA | ADENE, Portugal
MINISTERUL DEZVOLTARII REGIONALE SI ADMINISTRATIEI PUBLICE | MDRAP, Romania
BOVERKET | BOVERKET, Sweden
TECHNICKY A SKUSOBNY USTAV STAVEBNY n.o. | TSUS, Slovakia
GRADBENI INSTITUT ZRMK DOO | GI ZRMK, Slovenia
BUILDING RESEARCH ESTABLISHMENT LTD | BRE, United Kingdom

MANAGEMENT TEAM

The CA EPBD is led by the Danish Energy Agency as the overall Coordinator. The work is further organised around Central Teams (Core Teams (CT) and Cross Cutting Teams (CCT)) and supportive functions. Each team is led by a Central Team Manager.  The Coordinator, Central Team Managers and Communication & Dissemination Manager, together with EASME, form the Management Team, responsible for the set up of the work on topics during the Plenary Meetings in the CA EPBD.

CA EPBD Coordinator | Jens Laustsen, through DEA
CT1 New Nearly Zero Energy Buildings | Chris Hughes, SEAI
CT2 Building Codes | Zuzana Sternova, TSUS
CT3 Existing Buildings | Sussanne Geissler, through OIB
CT4 Renovation Strategies | Martin Pehnt, through BAFA
CT5 Certification and Training | Rui Fragoso, ADENE
CT6 Smart Buildings | Xavier Loncour, CSTC
CCT1 Technical elements | Kirsten Thomsen, through DEA
CCT2 Finance and Information | Päivi Laitila, MOTIVA
CCT3 Impact, Capacity and Data | Maja-Marija Nahod, MGIPU
Communication & Dissemination Manager | Peter Wouters, CSTC