Retrofitting energy efficient technology in buildings is greatly influenced by the payback period and, where relevant, the willingness of the occupiers or tenants to contribute to the investment
Speaking at RAC’s first Building Energy Question Time event earlier this month, Neil Pennell, sustainability director, Land Securities, whose building portfolio is in excess of £11bn, said: “From a commercial perspective, when you are thinking about retrofitting a solution to improve performance, there is a disconnect - because it is the occupier or the tenant that will benefit, so the payback goes to the tenant.
“In such cases you need to go to the tenant and ask them to contribute to the investment in the improved building - and that can be a challenge.”
Mr Pennell also said that existing buildings have been largely ignored in terms energy efficiency regulation so far, however that maybe set to change. “Existing buildings haven’t seen the same amount of attention from the government, but I think that is changing now with the realisation that if we are to hit the carbon reduction target of a very ambitious 80 per cent by 2050, around two thirds of our buildings will still be with us and we therefore need to improve their performance.”
To read the full Building Energy Question Time feature see the January 2014 edition of RAC magazine
You might also like...
UPDATE Chancellor scraps ECA tax benefit from Energy Technology List - but expands annual allowance
First-year tax relief scrapped but Energy Technology List continues to grow as regularly updated resource, according to Carbon Trust
Marks and Spencer and Scotmid Co-operative adopt aerofoil cooling
Both retailers have announced plans to adopt cooling technology based around Formula One engineering principles for their stores with aim to improve energy efficiency
Cold chain energy storage material trialled in China
A major rolling stock company in China has teamed up with the University of Birmingham to develop an energy efficient alternative to mechanical cooling of food containers
Online ‘clean cold’ tool unveiled to support more sustainable cooling
New initiative developed by UK academics with global support is intended to support more holistic planning of cooling systems and sustainable supply chains around the world
Have your say
You must sign in to make a comment
Please remember that the submission of any material is governed by our Terms and Conditions and by submitting material you confirm your agreement to these Terms and Conditions.
Links may be included in your comments but HTML is not permitted.