Efficient Buildings Digital Days #1

Mediterranean wave for the transformation of our cities

The Efficient Buildings Community is proud to present its Digital Days. The online event aims at moving forward the discussion on the post-Covid-19 recovery, on sustainable transition and on the role of public buildings refurbishment.

In the last weeks, many Mediterranean Member States proposed their Recovery Plans to the European Commission and it is now crucial to understand how can the building sector contribute to this sustainable recovery, what are the instruments available to the public authorities and what resources and solutions can be provided by the financial institutions. Mediterranean public authorities have also a role to play in the transferring of these sustainable practices to the South shore of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Efficient Buildings Digital Days aims at debating these issues and, at the same time, at showcasing a set of tools for an effective planning of energy refurbishment in public buildings.

The Digital Days are organized in a series of 3 workshops on specific digital tools to build the capacity of local authorities across the whole Mediterranean basin

Workshop #1 : 7 June 2021 – 14:00 – 16:00

SECAP and Sustainable Development Goals within the framework of the Covenant of Mayors

Within the framework of the Green Deal and the Renovation Wave, as well as the currently Recovery Plans, the Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAP) and the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMP) are becoming key mechanisms in the planning and monitoring of actions and in the allocation of funds at local and regional level. In this context, it is essential to know the latest advances in these mechanisms to adapt to the objectives of the EU in complying with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), as well as the type of tools and resources available that could facilitate the process. Thus, in this first Capacity Building Workshop, they are introduced both: the context of adaptation of the SECAPs, and the general review of the different resources available to improve energy efficiency in buildings, implement renewable energies and promote sustainable urban mobility.

Wokrshop #2 : 8 June 2021 – 14:00 – 16:00

Financial models for energy performance contracting: The STEPPING Tools

STEPPING project aimed at promoting the preparation of energy efficiency investment in public buildings using Energy Performance Contracts (EPS). As this type of contracts are innovative and require specific know-how and skills, the project delivered two instruments that will be presented during this capacity building workshop.

• The Simulation Tool for the evaluation of the financial sustainability of an EPC contract: This tool is designed for the bundling of projects and defines alternative scenarios aiming to find the financial conditions under which an Energy Service Company (ESCO) could be interested in investing into an investment program. Available language is EN.
• MED EPC Guidelines  aim to provide step-by-step guidance for the energy retrofitting of public buildings in the MED area through the use of Energy Performance Contracts, taking into consideration the intrinsic characteristics of the region. The MEG target primarily public authorities, but also EPC facilitators, ESCOs, financing institutions and market actors. The guidelines are available in different languages (EN, FR, SI, ES, PT, IT, GR).

The two output will be further transferred thanks to the STEPPING Plus project.

Wokrshop #3 : 9 June 2021 – 14:00 – 16:00

Strategic Planning of Public Buildings’ Energy Renovation: The IMPULSE Tools

The objective of this Capacity Building Workshop is to show how to define a local plan for the refurbishment of public buildings through the IMPULSE tools. IMPULSE project developed a series of instrument to support public authorities to develop their own strategic plans. In particular the workshop will focus on:

• IMPULSE Management Support System: A methodology for planning energy efficiency interventions in public buildings
• IMPULSE Tool for the prioritization of buildings to be upgraded and the prioritization of cost optimal energy renovation scenarios
• Implementation of the Tool, results and hierarchy of retrofitting measures in a typical public building in the Municipality of Heraklion