The Federal Government has recently foreshadowed the introduction of national legislation requiring the mandatory disclosure of the energy efficiency of commercial office buildings.
A Consultation Regulation document on the proposed mandatory disclosure requirements for building energy efficiency was released in December 2008.
The Consultation Regulation Document indicates that commercial buildings account for at least 10% of Australia’s total greenhouse gas emissions, with office buildings accounting for approximately 27% of emissions. Emissions from the commercial building sector have increased significantly (by 87%) between 1990 and 2006.
The proposed Act and Regulations underpinning the proposed scheme will require the disclosure of the energy rating of office buildings that are for sale or lease to the prospective buyers or tenants. The regulations will apply to corporations that own or lease buildings above a minimum threshold of 2000 m2 net lettable area (NLA). This requirement will also apply to any part of the building that exceeds the threshold area. If the measures proposed in this document are accepted, the scheme and legislation could be finalised for potential implementation in 2010.
The measure will initially cover only BCA Class 5 buildings (office buildings used for professional or commercial purposes) although there is intent to progressively expand the coverage of the scheme.
The scheme will enable potential buyers and tenants to compare the energy efficiency of buildings on a ‘like for like’ basis. The key objectives of the new scheme will be to overcome market impediments and ensure that both parties in a transaction have access to credible and meaningful information about a building’s energy efficiency.
The proposed scheme will require three types of disclosure with regard to energy efficiency:
- Disclosure of a valid energy efficiency rating in all advertising material;
- Disclosure of a valid building energy efficiency certificate (BEEC) and energy efficiency assessment report (EEAR) to prospective buyers or lessees; and
- Disclosure of a valid BEEC and EEAR to a central registry for policy analysis, audit and other specified purposes.
The exact content of the BEEC and EEAR will be stipulated by regulation.
Building Energy Efficiency Certificates (BEEC)
A BEEC will be valid for 12 months from its date of issue. Core requirements for a valid BEEC will include:
- A certificate reference number, certification date and validity date (12 months from certification);
- The building name and address, including post code;
- Key building data, including NLA;
- An appropriate star rating based on the proposed rating tool (NABERS – see below);
- Description of the type of rating – tenancy, base building or whole building;
- Detailed energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions data;
- Building assessor details, including name, trading address, assessor number; and
- Where relevant, the presence of any co- or tri-generation facilities within the building.
Energy Efficiency Assessment Report (EEAR)
An EEAR will be valid for seven years and will provide information in relation to improving a building’s or tenancy’s energy efficiency. In addition to the information contained in the BEEC it is expected that an EEAR will include information on practical opportunities to improve energy efficiency with regard to:
- Building controls, switching and operating parameters, including zoning, sub-metering, etc;
- Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems and controls;
- Lighting systems (power density, hours of use, sensors and controls);
- Hot water systems;
- Building envelope (insulation, shading, glazing); and/or
- Office equipment.
Proposed Energy Efficiency Rating Tool – NABERS
It is proposed that the National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) Energy accredited rating tool will initially be the sole rating tool. The NABERS Energy rating tool benchmarks actual operating energy use of the commercial office building by measuring the energy use per m2 NLA based on twelve contiguous months of metered fuel data (electricity, gas, diesel).
The rating tool awards from one star (high greenhouse impact) to five stars (low greenhouse impact) depending on the energy efficiency and greenhouse performance of the rated space. NABERS has a trained and accredited group of assessors who independently assess the rating of a building.
Exemptions from the Scheme
Exemptions will be considered for buildings with less than 12 months worth of contiguous data (i.e. new building), or where inadequate metering or other factors preventing an accredited assessor from being able to achieve the required quality standards of a NABERS Energy assessment. Situations where it is not feasible to prepare a valid energy efficiency assessment of a particular building or tenancy will be exempted from the scheme.
What are the likely impacts of the proposed Scheme?
It is envisaged that the scheme will exert pressure on building owners to reduce energy use in their buildings as the demand for “Green” buildings grows. The costs in improving a building’s energy star rating will vary considerably from building to building. To prepare for the introduction of the scheme, building owners should be reviewing their current energy use and identifying cost effective energy efficiency measures to improve the building’s NABERS Energy rating.
