What is Energiesprong?

Deeply revealing - the depth of the window reveals indicate the thickness of insulation in warm, comfortable Energiesprong homes.  Image: Energiesprong International

 

Could this Idea from the Netherlands Crack the Toughest Challenge in Energy Efficiency?

Into the gaping hole in UK energy efficiency policy (see previous blog) left by the UK government inaction and disinterest springs Energiesprong, a concept that originates in the Netherlands and could totally revolutionise the way we approach domestic energy efficiency.

Energiesprong translates as 'Energy Leap', and in contrast to the piecemeal, step by step approach that UK government has been trying to prod us down, Energiesprong aims to do it all in one go.  An Energiesprong refurbishment must meet five simple requirements:

1. The finished house should be zero energy - over the course of each year it generates sufficient energy to heat the house, provide hot water and power household appliances.
2. The renovation work is done in only one week
3. The residents do not have to leave their property while the work is going on
4. The work is covered by a 30-year warranty covering the indoor climate and the energy performance of the house
5. The combined savings from energy bills and maintenance as a result of the renovation should finance the cost of the work

The requirements may be easy to set out, but the technical challenges they present to the construction sector are far from simple.  How to cost effectively making millions of individual and unique homes cosy, comfortable and cheap to run.  Nothing less than a new era of mass-customised construction  is required.

Insulated wall panel being craned into place at the first Energiesprong in the UK
Image: Energiesprong International

The prevailing technical approach to an Energiesprong renovation is for the house to be surveyed externally to millimetre accuracy with laser scanners.  A highly-insulated timber frame cladding system is made in a factory off-site before arriving on a lorry and being lifted into place by a crane and attached to the existing walls.  A new roof, almost always covered with solar panels is lifted on top of the existing roof (sometimes even leaving the old tiles in place).  In effect you build a whole new house around the existing one.

Windows and doors are removed and replaced, and heating systems go electric - typically either heat pump or electric panel heaters, depending on how far the insulation has driven down the space heating demand.  Solar thermal, battery energy storage and ventilation may also figure in designs.

The fourth and fifth requirements are utterly crucial to the whole thing working, as they make it 'investable' .  Residents pay an 'energy services fee' which is the same as their current energy bill, but get a better looking, warmer and more comfortable house.  The goal is for the cost savings on future planned maintenance (e.g. window replacements, roofing renewal, heating system replacement) plus the energy services charge to total up to a figure high enough to be able to give financial markets a sufficient return for financing the upfront costs.  If this can be achieved, then the scope for expansion of the scheme is effectively unlimited.  It works without government support.  It is completely scalable and social landlords can raise private sector finance to refurbish their entire stocks of housing.





Row of Energiesprong homes, Melick, Netherlands. 
Image: Energiesprong International

It is this possibility, of funded deployment at scale that has got the construction industry, social landlords and local authorities so excited about Energiesprong.

Consider the challenges, though.  At the current cost of energy, Energiesprong UK estimates that the whole refurbishment must be done for around £40,000 per house to be properly self-financing.

For this cost point to be reached, serious economies of scale need to be unlocked.

Energiesprong UK, and sister organisations in France, Netherlands and other countries aim to create these economies of scale by encouraging social landlords with large portfolios of property to bring forward volume refurbishment programmes and at the same time encourage the construction sector to develop the innovative products and techniques that will be needed to deliver these projects at low cost.  This stage could then be followed by a roll-out to owner-occupied homes and even new build properties, where the model might finance the difference between building regulations energy efficiency levels and building to zero net energy.

So far, around 2,000 Energiesprong homes have been completed in the Netherlands, of which around 60% were renovations of existing properties and 40% new builds.  The first Energiesprong homes outside of the Netherlands have recently been completed in a pilot of 10 homes in Sneinton, Nottingham by Melius Homes for Nottingham City Homes.

The pilot programmes so far undertaken have cost more than the £40k target, and so have required top-up funding, but the volumes have been relatively small, predominantly pilot programmes.

Implications for Policy and Energy Efficiency

A couple of observations on current approaches to energy efficiency and government policy arise when considering the great potential from Energiesprong.

1. Many government policies are based on the prevailing concept of a long journey of many small steps.  For example the Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH) in Scotland requires social landlords to lift the energy efficiency of all homes, and it is envisaged that the minimum performance will ratchet up in small steps over time. This approach is not compatible with Energiesprong, for which it would make more sense to set targets for the average efficiency of stock.  This would give social landlords the flexibility to refurbish homes to a very high level and work their way through the whole stock year by year.  To allay fuel poverty concerns for people living in the homes that get dealt with later on, perhaps all stock should reach a minimum before an average score could be used.
2. Funded schemes, such as 'rent-a-roof' solar could be a complete dead end and indeed prove an impediment to the whole-house approach.  If you want to stick a new, cosy roof over an existing one as part of an Energiesprong refurb, but someone has already signed up to a 'free solar' plan which hands over the roof for 25 years to a financier, then you may find that you cannot remove the panels without paying to get out of that contract.  Similar, funded schemes, based on the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), for example for biomass boilers, could also prevent progress, as the RHI payment is based on the heat provided, which would be curtailed in a more energy efficient building.



Before and After.  Energiesprong refurbishment for Lefier Housing Association in the Netherlands. 
Image: Energiesprong International

It's About the Regeneration not the Generation

The main difference between Energiesprong and previous attempts at improving energy efficiency is the potential it provides for the redevelopment of entire streets and localities.

The whole outside of the house is renewed, and as the images show, the improvement can be extraordinary.  The scope for regeneration of tired old housing estates has got social housing providers and local authorities really interested.  Suddenly we're not only talking about energy saving, we're talking about regeneration and investment in the value of housing assets, funded by energy savings.

Consequently, it is possible that even before the £40k/house cost target is reached, significant projects can go ahead by combining with funds earmarked for the redevelopment of deprived areas.

Either way, the possibility of regenerating whole areas, with funding either partially or wholly paid for from future savings on energy bills is revolutionary and well worth reaching for!

Useful Resources

Energiesprong Foundation
Gallery of International Energiesprong Projects
Energiesprong UK
Energiesprong France

Energy Efficiency Regulations - Private Rented Properties

England and Wales 

Is the legislation in England and Wales Collateral Damage of the Green Deal fiasco? 

 In 2015 UK Government introduced legislation creating a minimum energy efficiency standard for homes and commercial properties that are rented out - the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 

This legislation captures around 9% of private rented properties in England (see my earlier blog: How Energy Efficient is UK Housing Stock?) - the Impact Assessment reckoned this would be around 360,000 homes that will need to have an EPC raised from F or G level (based on 2012 housing stats).

These houses would have needed an energy efficiency upgrade upon being re-let after April 1 2018 and by April 1 2020 if the tenancy didn't change first.

The legislation also covered non-domestic buildings. The impact assessment reckoned that 18% of business properties have an EPC of F or G this adds around 200,000 buildings to the total requiring an energy refurbishment.

However, in a ham-fisted attempt at joined up legislation, the government linked the legislation to the Green Deal.

This hopeless scheme was going to "transform Britain's buildings" by offering funded energy upgrades. Householders and social landlords were going to queue up to insulate their homes because the cost of repaying the loan would be less than the money saved on future energy bills. (Who could have possibly predicted that this wouldn't be an easy sell?)

It was ignominiously withdrawn in July 2015 having written only 14,000 Green Deal financing schemes due to its bewilderingly bureaucratic design and the unappealing interest rates offered on the loans.  (Damning National Audit Office report here)


How has the withdrawal of the Green Deal impacted the regulations on privately rented homes?

Here's an extract from the Impact Assessment associated with the regulations for private rented properties:

From 1st April 2016, landlords of a domestic property may not unreasonably refuse requests from their tenants for consent to energy efficiency improvements, where financial support is available that ensures no upfront costs to landlords for the measures, such as the Green Deal, the ECO, tenant’s own funds, or national or local authority grants.  

 From 1st April 2018, all new lettings or tenancy renews of applicable private rented properties in the domestic and non-domestic sectors should be brought up to a minimum EPC rating of an ‘E’ if this can be achieved with no upfront costs. 

By adding the requirement that the only energy efficiency improvements that have to be made are those with no upfront costs, the whole thing is effectively defunct. With the Green Deal gone, and precious few local authority grants around the only way that a building is going to be improved is if the tenant pays for it!

The regulations need to be urgently amended to require the Landlord to upgrade the property - perhaps with a cost cap (see information on new Scottish regulations below).

Meanwhile in Scotland... 

This issue looked as if it had been kicked into the long grass in Scotland after the working group tasked with developing Regulation of Energy Efficiency for the Private Sector (REEPS) seemed to get bogged down and put on ice in 2015, (naturally Westminster was blamed for this).

The only regulations affecting private landlords was a rather lame requirement to get an energy assessment (with recommendations) done - but without having to  action any of the recommendations.

However, Scot Gov has sprung into action and designated energy efficiency as a National Infrastructure Priority and published a consultation on a Scottish Energy Efficiency Programme (SEEP).

 Plans for energy efficiency requirements in the private rented sector have also been revealed in a consultation published in April 2017. The proposal is to legislate for privately rented houses covered by the so-called "repairing standard" which will need to meet a minimum energy efficiency rating on the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).

For new tenancies after 1 April 2019 the house will have to achieve an EPC rating of no worse than EPC band E. After 1 April 2022 (called the backstop date) all privately rented homes will have to achieve this minimum standard, irrespective of a tenancy change. 

Scottish goverment estimates that this change will affect 30,000 properties.

 Where the EPC shows a band of F or G, the owner will need to have a "minimum standards assessment" carried out and lodged on the EPC register before renting out the property. This new assessment is closely based on the EPC methodology, but will include recommendations of the lowest-cost technically appropriate measures to bringing the house up to the required energy standard.

 The owner will have to bring the property up to the standard required by the assessment within six months of the date of the assessment, but subject to a proposed cost cap of £5000.

The minimum standard ratchets up to EPC D, for new tenancies after 1 April 2022, with a backstop date of 1 April 2025.

The property owner will be responsible for getting the improvements required by the minimum standards assessment done. Local authorities will have the power to issue civil fines of up to £1,500 against any owner who does not comply with the standard.


The proposals for Scotland look very good.  If implemented, it would result in a clear process that can deliver low carbon buildings in this sector through the regular tightening of the requirements (beyond those mapped out to 2025).  The proposals seem to be a good mixture of ambition and realism.

By contrast, England and Wales is in disarray in this area and as in the regulation of so many other sectors (new homes, social housing), Scotland is showing the way.