Absa Oude Bloemhof Building awarded EPC, C-rating

13 Sep 2021

Under the Regulations for the Mandatory Display and Submission of Energy Performance Certificates for Buildings, gazetted by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) in December 2020, buildings in South Africa must have their energy performance assessed by an accredited party, which then issues an energy performance certificate (EPC), which rates the building from A - G for energy efficiency.

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At least a D-rating must be achieved to be compliant with the minimum energy efficiency requirements contained in the national Building Regulations. As an agency for the DMRE, the South African National Energy Development Institute (Sanedi) has been tasked with developing, hosting and maintaining the National Energy Performance Building Register in terms of the regulations.

Absa is the first bank to achieve compliance with the country’s new building energy performance regulations. Says Edwin Mavhungu, vice president: energy and systems at Absa: “We are delighted that the Absa Oude Bloemhof Building in Stellenbosch has received an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) after a comprehensive building energy performance assessment in accordance with SANS 1544. With a C-rating, the building performs above average and complies with the new government regulations. We will be looking to improve on this rating in the future, in line with our Road to Green strategy.”

Renewal every five years

Sanedi’s Barry Bredenkamp, general manager: energy efficiency and corporate communications, explains: “Buildings have until December 2022 to comply with the new building energy efficiency regulation. Once issued, an EPC must be displayed at the building’s entrance and needs to be renewed every five years, giving building owners the opportunity to improve their energy performance during that period.”

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“We look forward to continuing with the EPC assessment process for Absa’s portfolio, and finding ways to improve its energy performance ratings in the coming years so that we can make a meaningful contribution towards a greener South Africa,” says Kgomotso Jaca, energy and green building specialist for Bidvest Facilities Management, who has been working closely with Energy Management and Validation Services (EMVS) in this programme.

The EPC regulations apply to non-residential buildings with a net floor area of at least 2000m² in the private sector (schools, malls, theatres, etc.) and 1000m² for government buildings. For the purposes of the EPC, a building’s energy performance is measured in terms of kilowatt hours per square metre per annum (kWh/m2/pa) of net floor area in accordance with the National EPC Standard (SANS 1544). The certificate must be issued by a Sanas-accredited inspection body, in this case, EMVS.