Insulating new Europe from the high cost of heating

 A leading European institute for energy and the environment, Ecofys, recently published a report that bemoans the waste of energy in buildings in the new EU member states.

In the newcomers, buildings account for 40 percent of all energy use. This the same figure for the 'old' EU 15. However, energy use per sqm is 25 percent higher in the new member states, mainly due to lower levels of thermal insulation.

The report warns against the consequences of poor quality housing, combined with reduced subsidies for heating and rising energy prices.

It says the new member states are reaching crisis point and if action were taken, in the form of simple energy efficiency measures, some 800,000 barrels of oil could be saved every day, along with EUR 370 (zł.1,436) million a year by 2010, rising to nearly EUR 1 (zł.3.88) billion a year by 2015, and 230,000 full-time jobs could be created. 

The research shows that thermo-renovation in a Polish terraced house could reduce energy consumption by 80 percent and the project would repay investments within nine years.

Similar measures could save up to 79 percent in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia and Slovakia with up to 73 percent savings in Estonia and Latvia.

The report also points out that this would reduce Poland's dependence on foreign energy supplies and cut down greenhouse gas emissions.

Horst Biedermann, director general of the European Insulation and Manufacturers' Association (Eurima), says: "Our daily waste of energy from badly insulated buildings is unfortunately nothing new. However, what we are faced with here is nothing short of an imminent environmental and social crisis. To unlock these savings will take upfront investments, investments that many in the new Member States simply cannot make. Eurima is therefore calling for EU structural and cohesion funding to be targeted for these actions."

Apart from the call for a 20-percent reduction in energy use in buildings by 2020, Eurima is also demanding a revision of the Energy Performance in Buildings Directive to include all buildings below 1,000 sqm, incentives to provide EU funding for energy efficiency improvements and reduced VAT on energy efficiency products.

The organization also wants consumers to have regular information on the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency as well as best-practice sharing between member states.