In January 2010, the Greek ministry of the Environment, Energy and Climate Change launched a public consultation (http://www.opengov.gr/minenv/) on a Draft of a Ministerial Decision on the “Regulation for the Energy Performance of Buildings” and a Draft of a presidential decree on “Energy Inspection”. The abovementioned Drafts contain regulations relating to subjects that are generally set out in law 3661/2008 about “Energy Performance of Buildings” such as the terms of issue of the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), the administrative sanctions, etc. The public consultation will end on January 31, 2010 and the promulgation of the legal texts should be final by the end of April 2010.
In the Draft for the “Regulation about Energy Performance of Buildings” the following points may be interesting:
- Exceptions for preserved or protected buildings and for buildings smaller than 50 sq m.
- Establishment of the Study of Energy Efficiency (SEE) for new and existing buildings that are significantly renovated. This study shall be included in the documentation needed for obtaining a planning permission.
- The ECP requires three inspections: a) of the building, b) of the boilers of buildings that are heated by conventional fossil fuels and gas and c) of the air-conditioning systems with nominal power of more than (12) kW.
- In case that a building is rented or transferred, the owner should provide the ECP to the buyer or tenant, otherwise administrative penalties and fines shall be imposed. It is not specified whether the ECP will be a prerequisite for the contract or whether the lack of it would affect the validity of the act.
- On horizontal properties, a joint certification will be issued for the entire building when a shared heating system is used. All joint owners will bear the cost in proportion to their share. It is not clear what will be the case, if an owner wants to transfer or rent its apartment and the co-owners of the building refuse to bear the costs of the energy certification.
Further regulations for grants and tax incentives are expected to simplify the procedures and the attempt to de facto application of sustainable development if combined with certain improvements of the Drafts. The interest of the public is obvious from the numerous comments and suggestions that are posted on the website of the public consultation.