Renovating our house means improving our comfort as well as its quality. It also means reducing our energy bills and contributing to the climate challenge.
The objectives of the Brussels-Capital Region
The Brussels-Capital Region aims to take the climate challenge up, while improving the living comfort of the people of Brussels.
More than half of Brussels’ greenhouse gas emissions come from the energy consumption of buildings. The buildings in Brussels, most of which were built before the 1960s, are among the most energy-intensive in Europe. One third of buildings are not insulated at all. And the current rate of renovation is far from sufficient.
By 2050 at the latest, the average ‘PEB’ level of Brussels’ residential buildings will have to be C+, i.e. an average consumption of 100 kWh/m²/year. This is an enormous challenge, as Brussels’ housing is currently at an EPB level D or E. This target of 100 kWh/m²/year is a regional average.
In concrete terms?
In concrete terms, these objectives translate into the mandatory establishment of a ‘PEB’ certificate for all housing by 2025. Owners will soon have to start renovating their homes to meet a minimum performance level, either by insulating the roof, the facade, renovating the windows and glazing or renovating the heating system.
Today, energy renovation remains a complex and costly project and the Region is nowhere near as close as to follow in time the journey towards climate neutrality. It is necessary to change the paradigm and the scale in the way we trigger and carry out the energy renovation of our house.
This necessity brought the energetic renovation initiative to light, which aims to respond to the challenge of reducing the energy consumption of our houses, and if possible to achieve carbon neutrality, at affordable prices, with a flexible and adaptable model to the needs and capacities of the inhabitants, and with a fair and inclusive approach.