One of the most progressive organizations
in Europe or the European Alliance of Companies for Energy Efficiency in
Buildings is fittingly located in central Brussels. One of their tasks over the
years has been to create an environment that both informs and allows people
that are participating in the real estate market to actively understand and
choose their real estate forearmed with an abundance of knowledge about the
energy efficiency of the buildings that they are about to get involved with.They ended up creating a concept and process known as the Energy Performance Certificate. The Energy Performance Certificate is a certificate that is posted in any building that is open to the public that is larger than 500 m2 in participating countries. It contains important details as to how energy efficient the building it describes is. In addition, the description scale or metrics that are used to determine efficiency are the same throughout Europe, so both investors and owners can understand specifically what they need to in order to make decisions.
Owners and the EPC
Within Belgium, if you have a non-residential piece of property, the EPC can help you or hurt you depending upon how energy efficient your building is. If it is fairly antiquated and not that energy efficient, you might look at weatherization or alternate energy system installation if you feel that you are not as competitive in the rental market due to a low EPC rating. There are plenty of firms that will come in and provide estimates that you can factor into your operations. One of the types of firms that you might encounter are solar installation contractors. Solar is not always thought of as a primary type of energy production within Belgium- although even in Germany, where there is a lot of rain each year, they have now created over 50 percent of the country's energy in one day using solar energy. So you might consider adding some solar capacity to increase your EPC.
Buyers or Renters and the EPC
One of the most challenging and frustrating types of experiences for those going out to lease a retail or office space is to find a great location and then factor in the utility use afterwards to find out that the entire lease package is going to go over budget due to the heating or cooling costs.
It has been a problem for both large and small companies around the world. In fact, even Walmart and Carrefour have spent millions of dollars to figure out ways to become more energy efficient within their own retail stores.
So when you are out shopping for a place to rent or own for your business, having an EPC to refer to when it comes to energy costs is one of the largest advantages you can have in this regard. Referring to it during negotiations is an even better way to ensure that everyone who is renting gets some benefit from the EPC.
