Energy-efficient buildings

The new standards as an opportunity for the electrical industry
Hager Group Big house under construction

How can the basic need for housing be better reconciled with the need for stronger climate protection? What needs to change to make the ecological footprint of one's own four walls as small as possible? How can the electrical industry contribute to this goal with innovative products?


With the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), the EU provides the answers to these questions and at the same time creates the legal framework to make buildings even more efficient in the future. After all, an energy-efficient building sector makes a significant contribution to European climate protection.

"Building a house is the equivalent of 50 tonnes of CO2. If you use renewables you can then bring the 50 tonnes back down by giving some energy back into the grid."

Dr. Andreas Piepenbrink

Head of Hager Energy

A climate-neutral building stock 

By 2050, Europe's building stock is to become climate-neutral. At least that is the goal that the European Commission wants to enshrine in the amendment to its Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).

The task is ambitious, but it is also extremely important: In Germany, for example, there are about 21 million buildings. They account for around 35 percent of total energy consumption in Germany. This means that the building sector is at a similar level of consumption to the transport sector or industry.

Hager Group Person installs solar panels on house roof

Across the EU, three-quarters of buildings currently do not yet meet the efficiency requirements. So, there is still a lot to do by 2050, especially since only one percent of these buildings are renovated to make them more energy-efficient each year. Too slow to actually achieve the desired goal.


There is enormous potential for savings, from which not only the climate benefits. The EU Commission wants to make greater use of these possibilities – with new standards that apply to both new and existing buildings. With the new requirements of the EPBD, the building sector is intended to make a significant contribution to climate protection: lower energy consumption (for electricity, heating and hot water preparation) and greater use of renewable energies conserve important resources, make it easier to say goodbye to fossil fuels, reduce CO2 emissions – and mean considerable cost savings for end consumers.


The EPBD is therefore an essential tool in the fight against climate change and for more sustainable development. However, it is also clear that such an ambitious goal can only be achieved with joint efforts, especially in view of the new requirements for old buildings.

More efficient buildings:
from law to implementation

For around two decades, the EU directive for a better energy performance of buildings has been adapted again and again to the necessities of climate change and to the possibilities of technical innovations for higher energy efficiency.

The legal framework

 

The EU Buildings Directive now has a long history: The original version of the EPBD was adopted in 2002. A first amendment was made in 2010, and another followed in 2018. In March 2023, the European Parliament approved the current revision.

The goals formulated in it include: From 2030, all new buildings must be designed as zero-emission buildings. This should apply even earlier to new publicly owned buildings.

In addition, there will be so-called "Minimum Energy Performance Standards" (MEPS) for existing buildings with the two worst efficiency classes. They must be renovated at least up to class E of the revised, harmonised energy certificates for buildings.

The Building Energy Act for Germany

 

In Germany, the Building Energy Act (GEG) has been transposing the requirements of the EU Buildings Directive into national law since 2020. It contains all requirements for the energy quality of buildings, the creation and use of energy certificates and the use of renewable energies in buildings.

 

The goals are lower energy consumption and a higher use of renewable energies for heating, cooling and electricity for building operation (for indoor air, lighting and hot water).

 

The GEG is accompanied by the Federal Funding for Energy-Efficient Buildings (BEG). This means, among other things, that digital systems for energy optimisation of operation and consumption are also eligible for funding – the basis for efficient smart homes.

Advantages & Challenges in Implementation

 

The requirements of the EPBD and GEG sound like major challenges, especially regarding the necessary investments in the required energy efficiency. After all, an existing building may have to be upgraded by up to three efficiency classes. While the new standards can be incorporated into the planning of new buildings right from the start, this means renovating existing buildings.

 

In order to meet the requirements, partial renovations are often sufficient. In Germany, special subsidies are also provided for the worst buildings in terms of energy efficiency. 

 

In addition, there are clever solutions for retrofitting renewable energies and intelligent energy management in existing buildings. This is good for climate protection and for your own wallet.

 

Inspire – with innovative electrical engineering

The requirements of the EPBD and its implementation into national law in the European member states mean a lot of obligations for homeowners. This makes it even more crucial to pick up and inspire people with meaningful, comprehensible and simple solutions.


The demand for greater use of renewable energies makes the electrical industry an important partner for people – and for the transition to an energy-efficient, climate-neutral lifestyle. With innovative technologies and a wide range of possibilities, the industry has every chance to bring about positive change on both a small and large scale.

Hager Group House wall with fan-assisted ventilation

A key aspect is to show people that energy efficiency is not only possible. But that, in combination with renewable energies, it opens up completely new perspectives – for one's own life, for the neighborhood, for society as a whole. The electrical industry can provide individual, future-proof solutions for this purpose.

Old house, modern energy technology – no contradiction

 

Old existing buildings and modern energy technology: Can this work at all? This question often causes uncertainty in view of the increasing demands on building efficiency. The answer is amazingly simple – yes.

 

With the right technology, even historic buildings can be turned into a building that meets modern, sustainable requirements in every aspect.

 

Electrical engineering solutions are absolutely capable of integrating renewable energies, storage and energy management systems and even e-mobility into older existing buildings – and thus making them fit for the future.

Self-sufficient in energy supply

 

 

Energy and heating costs are rising, which can lead to high expenses for everything in unrenovated existing buildings. Investments in new heating technology and renewable energies are therefore worthwhile in the long term. 

 

Especially since modern electrical engineering with storage solutions and smart energy management provides the basis for a self-sufficient energy supply: Produce your own electricity and consume it directly yourself – regardless of the electricity providers and their prices. 

 

More efficiency, more comfort, more possibilities

 

Simply turning the obligatory task into a freestyle: With renewable energies and modern electrical engineering, it only takes a few steps to move from the required energy efficiency to completely new possibilities – low-emission and climate-friendly.

 

From the tenant electricity model for rented properties to smart building control for every house to the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, the electrical industry offers innovative solutions that work just as well in private homes as they do in an entire urban district. The legal requirements for more energy-efficient buildings should therefore always be seen as an opportunity to combine sustainability, comfort and future-proofness.

 

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