Long Term Renovation Strategy (LTRS)
The Long Term Renovation Strategy (LTRS) is a foundational component of the EU’s efforts to enhance the energy performance of buildings and contribute to achieving its climate and energy goals. This strategy aims to facilitate the transformation of existing buildings into highly energy-efficient and decarbonised buildings by 2050, addressing both the residential and non-residential sectors. The significance of LTRS lies in its forward-looking approach, setting out clear pathways for renovations that improve energy performance and enhance health, quality of life, and economic prosperity for EU citizens.
Goals and Objectives of LTRS
The primary goals and objectives associated with LTRS include:
Reducing Energy Consumption and Emissions: Significantly reduce the energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of the EU building stock, contributing to the EU’s climate neutrality target by 2050.
Promoting Deep Renovations: Encourage deep renovation of buildings to achieve substantial energy savings and integrate renewable energy sources.
Improving Health and Comfort: Enhance indoor environmental quality, thereby improving the health and comfort of occupants.
Stimulating the Economy: Drive economic growth and job creation in the construction and energy sectors through investments in building renovations.
Methodologies or Approaches for Implementation
Implementing LTRS involves several key approaches:
- Holistic Planning: Develop comprehensive plans that consider the entire lifecycle of buildings, incorporating energy efficiency, renewable energy, and smart technologies.
- Stakeholder Engagement: Involve all relevant stakeholders (property owners, tenants, industry professionals, local authorities) in the planning and implementation to ensure broad support and effectiveness.
- Financial Incentives and Support: Provide accessible financing options, subsidies, and technical support to encourage and facilitate renovations.
- Regulatory Measures: Implement regulatory measures that mandate energy performance improvements in certain buildings or circumstances, complemented by incentives for voluntary actions.
- Information and Awareness Campaigns: Raise awareness about the benefits of energy-efficient renovations and available support mechanisms to motivate building owners to undertake renovations.
Integration with EPBD Goals and Key Elements
Cost-optimal Level Calculations: LTRS leverages cost-optimal level calculations to ensure that renovation measures are economically viable, balancing energy performance improvements and financial feasibility.
Minimum Energy Performance Requirements (MEPRs): The strategy supports gradually tightening MEPRs, making buildings more energy-efficient, and pushing the market towards deeper renovations that exceed the minimum standards.
Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs): EPCs are used within LTRS to identify renovation opportunities and track improvements in energy performance over time, providing valuable data for planning and prioritising renovation activities.
Inspection of Heating and Air Conditioning Systems: Regular inspections, as part of LTRS, ensure that heating and cooling systems are updated or replaced as part of renovation projects, contributing to the overall energy efficiency of the building.
Nearly Zero-Energy Building (NZEB): LTRS aims to increase the number of NZEBs by encouraging renovations that significantly improve energy performance and integrate renewable energy, which aligns with the NZEB standard.
Smart Readiness of Buildings: Incorporating smart technologies into renovation projects is a key aspect of LTRS. This enhances buildings’ energy efficiency, adaptability, and occupant comfort while supporting the EPBD’s broader smart readiness initiative.
Infrastructure for Sustainable Mobility: While not directly related, the principles underlying LTRS support integrating sustainable mobility solutions, such as electric vehicle charging infrastructure, in renovation projects. This aligns with the broader goals of decarbonising the building stock and reducing emissions from the transport sector.
The Long-Term Renovation Strategy (LTRS) is a critical mechanism for achieving the transformative change required in the EU’s building sector to meet its energy and climate objectives. By providing a clear and comprehensive roadmap for renovations, LTRS plays a pivotal role in enhancing the energy performance and sustainability of buildings across the EU.
Additional resources about the LTRS
- One-stop shops for residential building energy renovation in the EU: https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC125380
- The role of one-stop shops in energy renovation – a comparative analysis of OSSs cases in Europe: https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC124675
- Financing energy renovations at local and regional levels: https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC123755
- CA_EPBD Renovation Strategies https://epbd-ca.eu/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/CT4-Renovation-Strategies-%E2%80%93-Status-in-2022.pdf
- Accelerating the energy efficiency renovation of residential buildings https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/934fec66-2b5f-11ee-95a2-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-307639908
