Renocally – Municipal Renovation Action Plans

The European Union’s (EU) Fit for 55 package includes a revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive that aims to push climate mitigation action through national building renovation plans. As buildings are responsible for 40 per cent of energy consumption and 36 per cent of emissions within the EU, renovating ineffective buildings is key to achieving EU climate targets. In this regard, local governments are an essential factor in decarbonising buildings. More specifically, public officials’ capacities to develop Building Renovation Passports (BRPs) – documents outlining a long-term step-by-step renovation roadmap for individual buildings – and financing strategies to accelerate building decarbonisation need to be strengthened. Furthermore, these renovations do not only reduce emissions but also reduce energy costs amidst high energy prices.  

Hospital in Berkovitza, Photo: © Dragomir Tzanev_EnEffect

Renocally supported municipalities and policymakers in Bulgaria, Romania, and Slovakia to decarbonise their building stock in a cost-efficient, people-centric way by implementing effective building renovation policies aligned with EU policy. The respective countries share a similar, inefficient building stock with high energy consumption and a high share of energy poverty. The project team conducted internal trainings for local authorities on financing and developing BRPs that aimed to produce 20 BRPs and 10 municipal financing strategies. In Romania and Bulgaria, meetings with involved municipal staff were organised to discuss the training’s outcomes and to get input from professionals already working with building decarbonisation. In Slovakia, results were discussed during a roundtable on BRPs with public authorities in charge of building certification and municipal energy planning. Furthermore, good practices and lessons learned were shared during a cross-country roundtable discussion in Romania and a knowledge-sharing webinar aimed at the Western Balkans. The project also presented the results at relevant policy and research conferences in the EU.

• Renovation roadmaps: In Romania, Bulgaria, and Slovakia, 21 public buildings have been issued with renovation certificates and ten municipal financing strategies have been developed, meaning that concrete energy renovation measures are now in place and can be implemented. The municipalities now have robust technical and financial roadmaps that enable them to systematically plan renovation measures, push ahead with investments, and mobilize funding. 
• More expertise for implementing measures and requirements: Employees of Bulgarian, Romanian, and Slovakian municipalities have been trained in the use of renovation certificates and can now plan and implement renovation measures. The latest EU requirements under the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive and the Energy Efficiency Directive were also discussed, as was their integration into regional energy and climate plans.   
• Regional knowledge transfer: Regional knowledge transfer was strengthened through round tables in Romania, webinars for the Western Balkan countries, and presentations of project examples at EU conferences. Participants shared their experiences with renovation passports and financing strategies across borders, built networks, and increased the visibility of their results at the European level.  
• The project reached over 7,000 stakeholders with communication measures, and project results were disseminated beyond the target countries.