Energy performance of residential buildings in Malta

Abstract

Energy use in buildings has been responsible for over 40% of the energy consumption in Europe. As a result the EU has produced a number of directives aiming at improving efficiency and reducing wastage. Following Malta’s EU membership in May 2004, the EU Directives, including the Energy Performance in Buildings Directive (EPBD), were transposed into national law. The EPBD Directive has become legally binding in January 2009. In order to fulfil its commitments, national software had to be developed to produce the energy rating certificates for buildings. Malta has identified software for application to residential buildings and has adapted it to Maltese conditions. The software has passed the preliminary validation stage and now it is necessary to ensure that it produces consistent and reliable outputs for different types of dwellings. This paper aims to study the status-quo of energy efficiency in Maltese residential buildings, vis-à-vis their sources and means of energy supply as well as their potential for reducing their energy demand. It also describes the main components of the newly established energy performance model and applies it to determine the energy performance of a typical multi-storey building. Results showed that the overall response of the software is good but a number of factors have been identified which would require some attention in future software updates. These include the reduction in natural light intensity for lower level buildings and the effect of placing insulation within or outside the building and its effect on the thermal mass of the building. The paper provides first-hand experience of using the Maltese Energy Performance of Residential Buildings Model and paves the way for the second stage of this research work, where the “Asset Rating” of these buildings is compared to the actual consumption of energy within them, also known as the “Operational Rating”.