Energy refurbishment towards nearly zero-energy terrace houses in the Mediterranean region

Abstract

The building sector in Europe is responsible for an estimated 40% of the total energy consumption and 10% of total CO2 emissions. Given an annual rate of 1 % of addition of new buildings in the existing building stock, the energy efficient renovation of the existing housing stock is imperative in order to reduce building energy consumption. It is for this reason that the European Union (EU) ranked the improvement of the energy performance of the old building stock as a high priority on its research agenda. Following Europe’s 20:20:20 objective, this case study investigates refurbishment scenarios that will make it possible to achieve nearly zero-energy buildings (nZEBs) in Cyprus. The research focuses on the terrace family house typology in Cyprus, as classified in the framework of the Intelligent Energy Europe, EU project EPISCOPE. The aim is to upgrade an old terrace building built before 1980. It into a nZEB with the implementation of national energy performance requirements, as drafted by the Ministry of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism (MECIT). A representative terrace family building was chosen and modeled using the Simplified Building Energy Model iSBEMcy tool. This is the official government software in Cyprus used for issuing Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) for the categorisation of the energy class of buildings and the calculation of CO2 emissions according to European Directives 2002/91/EC and 2010/31/EC. The study investigates whether it is possible for an old terrace family building to meet nZEB standards and identifies the lurking obstacles and challenges through building simulations. To this end, various refurbishment scenarios were developed, aimed at fulfilling the MECIT requirements. The efficiency of each strategy and technique employed towards minimising energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions was evaluated, in terms also of its cost-effectiveness. Furthermore, the results of the research were investigated to assess whether the nZEB requirements, as developed by MECIT, are appropriate for existing terrace family houses in Cyprus and whether alternative strategies may be employed to meet the target of nZEB and to effectively reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions.