On January 17, 2023, it appeared in the Official Gazette no. 46 MDLPA order no. 16/2023 for the approval of the technical regulation “Methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings, reference Mc001-2022”. The majority of specialists expect a “paradigm change that will lead to an increase in quality in the building sector”, according to Prof. Dr. Eng. Cătălin Lungu. Known as “Mc001” for short, the revised version of the regulation includes numerous technical elements that will come into effect gradually. You can find details on the page of the Association of Energy Auditors for Buildings in Romania.
Central and local authorities, energy auditors for buildings and designers, executors, as well as beneficiaries, will have to take into account the new provisions. Also read “The new methodology for calculating energy performance for nZEB buildings will be a shock, we need to get ready”!
Central and local authorities
According to Amos News, the regulation specifies the documents that must be presented by builders in different phases of the design or in order to receive new buildings (compulsorily included in the NZEB category – buildings with near-zero energy consumption), respectively of existing ones that are being renovated. The format and content of the new CPE – energy performance certificate, easy to digitize, are in accordance with the new European standards and the provisions of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), anticipating some of the effects of the revision of this directive, expected in 2023. Requirements technical requirements imposed by Mc001 will contribute substantially to the fulfillment of the updated commitments of the national authorities (see Decision no. 1076/2021 for the approval of the Integrated National Energy and Climate Change Plan 2021-2030), namely to achieve for the buildings sector a substantial reduction in final energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, i.e. an increase in the percentage of energy consumed from renewable sources by 2030 and subsequent decarbonisation of this sector by 2050.
Energy auditors
The energy calculation method in Mc001/2022, more complex than the one in Mc001/2006 that it replaces, is of a modular type, and can be applied both to the situation of an independent energy assessed apartment (apartment CPE) and to buildings equipped with complex installation systems. Specialists will be able to use Mc001 from the design phase for the NZEB compliance of new buildings, the verification process being defined in different phases of the construction of a new building or the energy renovation of an existing building. The content of an energy compliance report or an energy audit report is detailed, the parts of an energy certification file or energy audit file are specified.
Builders
Based on the new technical requirements included in Mc001/2022 (obligatory mechanical ventilation of new or renovated non-residential buildings, the obligation to fit the building within the maximum limits of primary energy consumption, etc.), builders will be able to more easily accept the technical solutions for NZEB offered correctly by designers. And on the other hand, the builders will finally be able to offer the beneficiaries very energy-efficient buildings, in which the quality of the interior environment is ensured, regardless of the external climatic conditions.
Beneficiary
Buildings built according to the new Mc001 regulation will consume much less energy, so electricity and heat bills will be substantially lower. The decrease in energy bills will be all the greater as the minimum allowed percentage of 30% regarding the energy consumed from renewable sources will be exceeded. Also, all the construction materials and installation equipment used will be more sustainable, more reliable and much more carefully put into operation, the advantages being quantified not only until the turnkey handover of the investment, but over the entire life of the building, according to the concept of “optimal global cost”.
The Mc001 update is the result of many years of efforts coordinated by Assoc. Ph.D. Eng. Cătălin Lungu (UTCB) together with a small group of experts “who contributed substantially to the elaboration of this fundamental technical regulation for the sustainable development of the building sector in Romania”, according to AmosNews. Energy auditors, representatives of the Ministry of Public Works Development and Administration, ASRO, representatives of general contractors and manufacturers of construction materials and installation equipment contributed.