Just 2% of commercial buildings in seven major UK cities have an EPC rating of A and 15% have a B rating, according to new research published by the British Property Federation (BPF).
The BPF’s analysis of commercial real estate assets in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle, found that 83% of commercial buildings have an EPC rating below B.
The current proposals for EPC ratings in the commercial sector, consulted on in 2021, are a target of EPC C by 2027 and EPC B by 2030.
To bring all commercial real estate in these cities up to an EPC A or B by the 2030 deadline would require 94,595 sq m of space to be upgraded every single day for the next five years.
Rob Wall, assistant director at the British Property Federation, said: “Commercial and industrial buildings account for around a third of all building emissions. The sector has a critical role to play in tackling climate change. Yet the government continues to keep owners and investors in the dark about future minimum energy efficiency standards.
“Our research shows the scale of the challenge we face in retrofitting our commercial buildings, across all asset types and across the UK. The lack of a response to the 2021 consultation is hugely frustrating and is making a tough situation worse. The targets proposed in 2021 no longer look achievable, and we would call for the proposed interim EPC C target to be abandoned entirely.
“To be clear, we support higher minimum standards, and we are seeing improvements in the EPC ratings of commercial buildings. But progress is slow. If we are to have any chance of hitting an EPC B target by the early 2030s then we need clarity from government now.”
