Buildings Energy Efficiency Policies: The bumpy road to effective implementation

Background

The total global final energy consumption in 2007 was 8230 Mtoe; 44 % of which was consumed by buildings in OECD countries. The energy demand from buildings is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years driven by the pressure from population growth, changes in climate leading to greater demands for cooling in warm climates and increased personal wealth leading to increased consumer demand for appliances.

Most of the buildings in OECD countries were constructed before 1970, and a significant percentage before 1945. Thus retrofitting policies are important for reducing energy use. In the non-IEA countries, buildings are comparably newer as construction of new buildings keeps pace with population increases.

Recent IEA analysis of buildings energy efficiency policies shows that countries apply varying standards, weak enforcement and provide few effective incentives for improved energy performance of buildings.

The aim of the IEA-WBCSD workshop is to discuss the current buildings energy efficiency policies and their effective implementation. The objective is to better understand the policy levers that will overcome the barriers faced by local authorities in implementing buildings energy efficiency policies.

The IEA and WBCSD proposals to overcome those barriers include: 

• Adopting a holistic approach to deliver value by capitalizing on the interdependency of the building elements
• Making energy in buildings more valued by developing long term incentive schemes, new commercial relationships and financial mechanisms, and providing clearer information about building energy performance.
• Training building professionals and users to encourage behaviours that will respond more readily to market opportunities and signals and maximize the potential of existing technologies and innovations.

This workshop was part of the IEA-WBCSD collaborative effort in cutting energy use in the buildings sector.

Welcome
Mr. Philippe BENOIT, IEA

Welcome/Opening Remarks

Ms. Maria VAN DER HOEVEN, Ms. Maria VAN DER HOEVEN, Executive Director, IEA
Mr. Peter BAKKER, President of WBCSD

Session 1: International trends on Buildings Energy Efficiency Policies (BEEP)
Moderator:
Mr. Bo DICZFALUSY IEA

Ms. Yamina SAHEB , International Energy Agency
Mr. Philippe FONTAWBCSD

Coffee break sponsored by WBCSD

Session 2: EU and US Policy Packages for Energy Efficient buildings
Moderators:

Mr. Constant Van Aerschot, Vice-chair of WBCSD EEB 1
Mr. Alexandre JEANDEL , WBCSD

Mr. Claude TURMES , European Parliament
Ms. Kristina DELY Covenant of Mayors Office
Mr. Mark FRIEDRICHS, US-DOE

Session 3: Buildings Energy Efficiency Policy (BEEP) Packages at a local level
Moderator:
Philippe BENOIT, IEA

Paris
Ms. Anne GED , Director of the Parisian Climate Agency
Mr. Franck HOVORKA , Director at la Caisse des Dépôts, Paris

Berlin
Mr. Achim NEUHAEUSER , Division Manager at the Berlin Energy Agency

Lunch sponsered by WBCSD

Discussion: How to trigger the implementation of energy efficiency in buildings measures?
Moderator:
Mr. Rod JANSSEN, International Energy Efficiency expert

Discussants:
- Yamina SAHEB, IEA
- Amit BANDO , IPEEC
- Alexandre JEANDEL, WBCSD
- Philippe FONTA, WBCSD
- Mark FRIEDRICHS, US-DOE
- Claude TURMES, European Parliament
- Kristina DELY, Covenant of Mayors Office
- Franck HOVORKA, Caisse des Dépôts
- Achim NEUHAEUSER, Berlin Energy Agency
- Jens LAUSTSEN, Global Buildings Performance Network
- Benoit LEBOT, UNDP

Wrap-up and next steps
Ms. Yamina SAHEB and Mr. Philippe FONTA