A new approach in the refurbishment of the office buildings – from standard to alternative nearly zero energy buildings

Abstract

The government of Cyprus has developed packages addressing the energy performance of non-residential buildings, in order to achieve the national energy reduction objectives. Currently, Decree 366/2014 is in force, defining the requirements for a building to qualify as a nearly Zero Energy Building (nΖΕΒ). However, this falls short of addressing sufficiently the high cooling energy demand of buildings in Cyprus. This paper examines the energy and economic viability of various refurbishment scenarios by considering a public office building in the city of Limassol as a case study. The energy performance of the building was analysed first for its current state and also according to nZEB standards. In addition, a set of supplementary measures was examined, to develop a cost-effective alternative nZEB energy refurbishment model. Based on the results, the existing legislation, defining an nZEB is reconsidered prompting a proactive discussion towards the improvement of the current energy regulating Directives.

Keywords

• smart refurbishment
• energy indicators
• energy demand
• energy performance certificate
• nearly zero energy buildings