Funds for rehabilitation will benefit the automatic door sector

Energy efficiency is, along with the reduction in emissions and the increase of renewable energy, one of the three main goals approved in May by Law 7/2021, on climate change and energy transition, as explained by Antonio Hernandez, a partner in regulated sectors and economic analysis with EY. “Particularly in the area of energy efficiency is where there has been a commitment to reduce primary energy consumption by at least 39.5% by 2030”.

Given that the existing buildings use around 30% of the end energy, “the energy rehabilitation of buildings is considered as a priority measure within the National Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030 (PNIEC), which has established the goal of energy rehabilitation of one million two hundred thousand homes by 2030”.

Also, as stated by Hernandez, “after the negative impact of Covid-19 on the economy, it has become necessary to promote the economic reactivation of a group of business sectors linked to energy transition, among which is the construction sector”.

This is why the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan has considered the program for home rehabilitation and urban regeneration “as the second most important of the 20 pull-through programs considered for the 2021-23 period within the area of energy transition, with an assignation of over €6,500 million, which will come from the Next Generation funds from the European Union”.

Without a doubt, all of these efforts to rehabilitate existing Spanish homes will also have a very positive effect on industries such as automatic doors and windows, whose contribution to energy efficiency is increasingly higher.

Direct subsidies

The EY expert also mentioned Royal Decree 737/2020, which approves the program for financial assistance for energy rehabilitation work on existing buildings and directly awards assistance to the autonomous communities and the cities of Ceuta and Melilla. “This program, which started out with €300 million originating from the National Fund for Energy Efficiency, and managed centrally by the IDAE, has approved budget expansions (the latest in July) for those autonomous communities that have committed their budget, such as Asturias, Navarre and the Basque Country”.

“The assistance awarded includes improvements to the thermal wrap (more efficient windows and doors, etc.), improvements to lighting installations and the use of renewable energy in thermal installations for heating, HVAC, cooling, ventilation and hot water” he said.

According to this expert, building rehabilitation is key to improving energy efficiency and recovering our economy and, therefore, it is one of the priorities of our country’s energy and economic policies, as well as for the Next Generation European funds”. However, he also advised that “in addition to financial backing, there are other steps required, among which are revising the Technical Building Code and raising people’s awareness of the importance and medium-term benefits of energy efficiency”.