Wednesday 9 November 2016

Certificates of Energy Efficiency for Buildings in Spain

Certification of the Energy Efficiency of Buildings in Spain

Purpose and Basic Procedure


In 2013 came into force the Spanish Royal Decree 235/2013, approving the Basic Procedure for the certification of the energy efficiency of buildings. This Royal Decree partially transposes the European Directive 2010/31/EU, recasting the Spanish Royal Decree 47/2007. The Royal Decree 235/2013 does not set the minimum requirements for energy efficiency, since the definition of such requirements must be made by the Spanish Technical Building Code (CTE), but establishes the obligation to make available to buyers or users of buildings a Certificate of Energy Efficiency that must include:
  • accurate information about the energy efficiency of the building
  • reference values, ​​such as minimum energy efficiency requirements.

Purpose of the Energy Efficiency Certificate

The purpose of the Certificate is to provide to the owners or tenants of all or part of the building the opportunity to compare and evaluate its energy efficiency. It is intended that such evaluation and comparison will promote the development of buildings with high energy efficiency, as well as the investment in energy savings. In addition, the information provided by the certificates, about CO2 emissions caused by the use of energy by emitting sources in the residential sector, will allow the adoption of future measures in order to reduce emissions and improve the energy rating of  the Spanish buildings.

The Basic Procedure

The Spanish Royal Decree 235/2013 establishes the Basic Procedure to be followed by the methodology for the calculation of the energy efficiency rating, considering:
  • which factors have more incidence in the energy consumption
  • which technical and administrative conditions must affect the certification of the energy efficiency of buildings.

Almost Zero Energy Consumption

The European Directive 2010/31 /EU establishes the dates from which all buildings to be constructed in Europe will have to be featured by an “Almost Zero Energy Consumption”. These dates are:
  • for public buildings, on 31 December 2018
  • for private buildings, on 31 December 2020.

In Spain, the Technical Building Code will have to set the required standards affecting the buildings in order they can be considered “Almost Zero Energy Consumption”, when the time comes.

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://classic.avantlink.com/affiliate_app_confirm.php?mode=js&authResponse=01a5bc3f0de37e2775381a715593298050a258f6"></script>
Architectural Reports in Spain