The South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) oversees the energy performance of each non-residential building in South Africa via Energy Performance Certificates (EPC). The certification is issued against the SANS 10400 XA:2021 regulation, and there’s an expensive certificate deadline galloping towards building owners in December 2022.
Are you ready for the deadline?
The Purpose & Penalties Of EPCs
If you are the owner of a non-residential building in South Africa, then the 7th of December 2022 is a big date for you. Your EPC will need to be registered and displayed by then, or you could face a R5 million fine, a five-year prison sentence or both.
This is not a surprise move by SANEDI. The gazetted announcement was published on the 8th of December 2020, as well as its deadline date. This certification is aimed at slowing the rise of the earth’s temperature and reducing the pressure on our embattled national electrical grid.
Each building’s energy consumption per square metre is used as an efficiency grading system, labelled from A (efficient) to G (least efficient). The regulation requires building owners to declare and display the consumption (and efficiency) of each building.
The Benefits Of EPC Certificates & Regulations
The long-term goal of the regulations is to create opportunities for building energy improvements, financial savings, increased property value and better environmentally-based choices for consumers.
The certification primarily aims to make building owners aware of areas where they could be more energy efficient. It will also help users of buildings to make more environmentally-friendly decisions about their usage behaviour.
It is believed that EPCs will give buyers better insight into a building’s energy usage and costs which will encourage current owners to improve their game.
Buildings Impacted By EPC Requirements
All properties zoned for use as offices, entertainment, education, indoor sports, community centres, etc. will be affected by EPC requirements. Factories and manufacturing plants are excluded for now.
Other inclusions for an EPC are:
- Your building has to be older than two years old
- Government buildings must have a floor area greater than 1000m2
- Privately-owned buildings must have a floor area greater than 2000m2
Note: The above floor area parameters exclude garages, car parks, and storage areas.
How To Obtain An EPC
To obtain an EPC, you are required to gather the pertinent information, for example:
- Annual electricity consumption
- The net floor square metres (Total minus the above-mentioned areas)
- Data on sites being excluded
- The annual vacancy rate
This data then needs to be audited by an inspection body (IB) that is accredited by the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS). The submission to SANEDI happens directly from the IB, and your audited data is then captured into the Energy Performance Register.
The IB then receives your unique EPC number, which is issued to you on the EPC printed by the IB. This EPC must then be visibly displayed at your building’s front entrance.
Conclusion
The certification will solve all energy issues, but it’s a positive step in the right direction. It has to be recertified every five years, which will, hopefully, keep the overall efficiencies improving.
Need help with your EPC certificates and regulations? Call us at Energy Management Solutions now!