“We hope this Renovation wave will have a butterfly effect and trigger a ripple effect for an unprecedented transformation of our buildings”, says Bertrand Cazes in a video statement published in reaction to the release of the Renovation Wave by the European Commission.
By way of the Renovation Wave, the European Commission aims to at least double renovation rates in the next ten years and make sure renovations lead to higher energy efficiency. The goal is to renovate 35 million buildings by 2030 and unleash the creation of up to 160 000 jobs in the construction sector.
Glass for Europe believes that the initiative goes in the right direction even if the proposed actions remain somewhat limited. The European Commission misses the opportunity of creating a dedicated fund for renovation to boost the recovery in the construction sector and does not set a specific target for renovation which could have provided the required boost.
The call on Member States to dedicate more of the Recovery and Resilience Facility to building renovation and the invitation to massively renovate public buildings are very welcome by the European flat glass industry. A revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is also foreseen and needed. This is all going in the right direction and so Bertrand Cazes concluded that ‘today’s communication is the beginning of something that needs to become much bigger and stronger’.
The building glass sector is ready to play its role to decarbonise EU buildings and Glass for Europe will engage with EU policy makers to make a success of the announced revision of the EPBD.
Read An activable Renovation Wave to meet the EU’s climate ambition and relaunch the construction sector