We’ve been talking about it for over 10 years… After much twists and turns, the tertiary decree is finally about to become a reality with the recent publication of its main implementing decree.
Announced so many times (Grenelle 2 Law of July 2010, Energy Transition Law of August 18, 2015) and canceled or postponed so many times. Some had ended up thinking that it would never see the light of day. It’s clear that it won’t. This time, unless there’s a last-minute change of heart, it will really be applied. Surely proof that minds and professionals are now ready to take on an ambitious energy sobriety policy.
Perhaps this is a concrete illustration of the “world after”, which more and more people are calling for in this post-covid period? The future will tell us how the market will take ownership of this new regulation. And what impact will this have on the necessary and urgent decarbonization of the real estate sector.
For my part, I have the feeling that we have here (finally!) a “green regulation” that is both ambitious in its objectives and virtuous in its implementation.
Ambitious, since it involves reducing the energy consumption of tertiary buildings by 40% in 10 years. And by 60% in 30 years.
Virtuous, because by forcing lessors and lessees to precisely monitor their actual energy consumption, and to implement concrete actions to reduce it, the legislator is really giving itself the means to fight against “Greenwashing”.
The objectives of the tertiary decree
The legislator’s objective is simple: reduce final energy consumption to reduce CO2 emissions. This is the “sobriety” steering wheel of the energy transition.
The building sector consumes 755 TWh each year. This makes it the largest energy-consuming sector, ahead of transport and industry. It is therefore one of the major axes of public policy to reduce energy consumption.
Within the construction sector, the Tertiary sector (offices, retail, warehouses, healthcare, etc.) represents a large third of consumption. That is approximately 280 TWh.
Of the billion sqm represented by the tertiary sector, 2/3 are held by private players and 1/3 by public players.
For all owners or users of tertiary premises with a surface area greater than 1000 sqm, the tertiary decree sets a target for reducing final energy consumption by:
- 40% by 2030
- 50% by 2040
- 60% by 2050
Implementation of the tertiary decree
To “force” stakeholders to achieve this ambitious objective, the legislator has devised an original system based on:
- the collection, control and monitoring of final energy consumption;
- the obligation to implement action plans to reduce consumption and the justification of these action plans;
- the award of an “Eco Energie Tertiaire” rating to measure the progress of the building in relation to the objective;
- a “Name & Shame” sanction (in addition to a financial penalty) for stakeholders who do not play the game.
1. Collection, control and monitoring of energy consumption
From 2021, all owners or users of tertiary premises of more than 1000 m² will have to provide ADEME (the French Environment and Energy Management Agency) with details of their energy consumption. The first year entered will be 2020. The energy data will be collected on a computer platform called OPERAT (Observatory of Energy Performance, Renovation and Tertiary Actions).
This central system constitutes, I believe, an important step towards the outline of a homogeneous and structured “carbon accounting”.
2. Action plans to reduce energy consumption
Unless they can justify technical, architectural or heritage constraints that limit or prevent the actions, taxable persons will be required to implement actions to improve energy efficiency to achieve the set objectives.
The prohibitive cost of said actions may only allow for a modulation of the objectives if the taxable person demonstrates that the return on investment (ROI) is greater than:
- 30 years for building envelope renovation actions;
- 15 years for equipment renewal work;
- 6 years for actions to set up equipment optimization systems
3. The “Eco Tertiary Energy” rating
A rating automatically assigned by the OPERAT platform will make it possible to assess the building’s progress annually in relation to its objectives.
The “Eco Energie Tertiaire” rating will be illustrated by colored tree leaves (gray for the poor performers, green for the good performers).
We can bet that this rating will constitute a new element of assessment for future tenants and buyers of tertiary buildings; they will thus be able to judge the building’s progress in its trajectory of reducing energy consumption.
It is a safe bet that the annual OPERAT certificates, accompanied by the technical files justifying the measures taken, will soon be among the elements examined closely in the data rooms of buildings during transactions.
4. The sanctions provided for
Although the financial penalty provided for by the legislator seems to be of little incentive (€7,500 per legal entity for legal persons), the “Name & Shame” system should in any case ensure the effectiveness of the regulation.
Indeed, in the event of failure to comply with its obligations to transmit information, failure to comply with its objectives or failure to implement action plans, the name of the taxable person who has not fulfilled its obligations will be published on a government website.
The legislator is thus counting on the growing unacceptability of public opinion with regard to behavior that is not “virtuous” in environmental matters.
The future will tell us whether this new regulation will mark a turning point in the environmental transition of the tertiary real estate sector. One way or another, we will have to find a way to reduce the environmental footprint of the real estate sector. So why not seize this opportunity? Let us bet that the events we have just experienced will also contribute to a collective awareness of the urgency to act.
