On 7 December, EU lawmakers reached a political agreement on the revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), Euractiv reports.
As part of this agreement, fossil fuel boilers are to be phased out completely by 2040 and subsidies reduced from 2025. Ciarán Cuffe, a green lawmaker from Ireland who was the lead speaker on the EPBD revision for the European Parliament, said:
“We have achieved something remarkable this evening. We created a blueprint for the transition towards a zero-emission building stock.”
From 2030, all new residential buildings must be fitted with solar panels, and then gradually installed elsewhere as well, according to a preliminary agreement between the European Parliament and the 27 EU Council member states.
Under this agreement, all new buildings must be zero-emission from 2030 onwards, and for new buildings occupied or owned by public authorities, this target is brought forward to 2028.
Legal experts are currently scrutinising the policy agreement reached by Parliament and the Council before it is sent to both institutions for formal approval. Parliament’s Industry Committee had tentatively set the vote for 23 January 2024. But it was a long way off for lawmakers, who looked exhausted after two years of intense negotiations since the European Commission submitted its proposal in December 2021. MEP Seán Kelly, a centre-right lawmaker from Ireland who was the lead negotiator for the European Parliament, noted:
“Delighted and relieved that after two years of work and a lot of very tough meetings, we now have a deal on EPBD.”
