Multiple benefits of renovation in buildings - PU Europe

Multiple benefits of investing in energy
efficient renovation of buildings
reduced outlay on subsidies for energy consumption by €0.7 billion in the low EE scenario
and €1.1 billion in the high EE scenario, cf. Table A.13.
Table A.13 Reduced outlay on energy consumption subsidies
billion € Low EE scen High EE scen
Saved energy consumption
subsidies (2012-2020) 0.7 1,1
Saved energy consumption
subsidies (2020-2030) 0.7 1.1
Source: Copenhagen Economics, based on OECD (2011c).
In some countries, production of energy based on fossil fuels is also subsidised. These
subsidies are however of relatively small, and decreasing magnitude. In Germany e.g.
where subsidies to coal production historically has been sizeable, it is being gradually
phased out and currently stands at €1.7 billion in 2010 down from about €5 billion in
1999. 60 This subsidy includes support for closing down coal fired power plants. Subsidies
of this kind will not be affected by a lower energy consumption spurred e.g. by increased
energy efficient renovation of buildings, and is therefore not included in our assessment.
A.8 Reduced outlay on subsidies - renewable energy
deployment
The EU Member States have agreed to the ambitious “climate and energy package”, including
the three 20-20-20 targets: 61
A reduction in EU greenhouse gas emissions of at least 20% below 1990 levels
20% of EU energy consumption to come from renewable resources
A 20% reduction in primary energy use compared with projected levels, to be
achieved by improving energy efficiency.
Investing in energy efficient renovation of buildings clearly contributes to the third target,
but it also contributes to the first and second target by lowering EU energy consumption
and thus greenhouse gas emissions.
All EU Member States have put forward detailed plans on how to achieve the second objective:
increasing the share of renewable energy in energy consumption to 20 per cent on
average. These plans involve expanding different types of renewable energy in both electricity
and heat generation. By reducing the total energy consumption through energy
efficiency renovations, the RE-target will be cheaper to meet by definition.
60 See OECD (2011), Inventory of budgetary support and tax expenditure for fossil fuels – Germany, page 3.
61 DG Climate webpage. http://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/package/index_en.htm
58