ALDREN: A Methodological Framework to Support Decision-Making and Investments in Deep Energy Renovation of Non-Residential Buildings

Since 2002, the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) has set up the path to improve the efficiency gains in the EU building sector, including measures that should accelerate the rate of building renovation towards more energy efficient systems. Under the 2010 EPBD, all EU countries have established independent energy performance certification systems supported by independent mechanisms of control and verification. The EU directive 2018/844 has introduced different novelties and one of these regards the possibility for the Member States, together with the Long-Term Renovation Strategies (LTRS), to introduce an optional Building Renovation Passport Article 2a.1(c), considered as an empowering document that gives more reliable and independent information on the potential for energy savings that is tied up in their buildings. On 14 October 2020, the European Commission launched its Communication and Strategy on the Renovation Wave initiative, intending to double the current Europe’s renovation rate to make the continent carbon neutral by 2050. However, current practices and tools of energy performance assessment and certification applied across Europe face several challenges. In this context, the ALDREN project is a methodological framework that aims to support decision-making and investment in deep energy renovation of nonresidential buildings, based on a set of procedures (modules) that consist in the step-by-step implementation of protocols to assess the energy performance, indoor environmental quality, and financial value of buildings, before and after the energy renovation. The paper presents the ALDREN overall procedure with a focus on the development of the Building Renovation Passport and its application to an Italian office building.