An EPC is an Energy Performance Certificate and it is the way that the government has chosen as a means of complying with the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). This is a piece of legislation from the EU that is designed to act as an incentive to make buildings more energy efficient. They hope that by making buildings display their energy use and efficiency, it will encourage their owners to take action to reduce energy consumption. In turn this should reduce carbon footprints and save precious natural resources.
In essence, it will soon become law that all commercial buildings, (i.e. non domestic buildings) when they are built, sold or leased, will have to have a current and valid EPC.
This certificate will include vital and up to date information about the energy efficiency of the building, such as :
Information relating to the energy efficiency rating of the building.
Accurate information about how many carbon emissions are produced by the building itself.
Information about how much the building costs to run each year as well as suggestions as to how the energy efficiency of the building can actually be improved.
EPCs are now required in all commercial buildings with a floor area that is in excess of 2,500 m2.
Then, from 1 st October 2008, any commercial buildings will have to have an EPC. If the building is over 1,000 m2, then the certificate will have to be publicly displayed.
For those who think that the EPC ' won't matter ' it does, since the whole issue is to be enforced and regulated by Trading Standard officers of the local authorities. They will be able to fine a company if it does not have an EPC, 6 months after it should have obtained one. Fines will also be applicable if the EPC is not displayed: so they do matter.
They also provide quite an incentive for companies to start looking at ways in which they can become more cost effective in terms of energy use, since no-one will want to take on buildings with a high energy consumption! This means that some buildings may actually increase in terms of their commercial value if they have a low energy use, whereas others could lose their value.
So it really makes sense to become ' energy wise ', or otherwise, you could simply find that your business starts to lose its edge and your premises start to lose their value, which means that you do have to think about energy use: it's not too late, so start now. Consider ways that your premises can become more energy efficient and how an expert company like British Gas may be able to help.
