Energy efficiency meaning

During any due diligence, a purchaser should establish whether an energy performance certificate (EPC) and a recommendation report are required, and then confirm that a valid EPC has been provided. In a multi-let building, several EPCs may be needed for different parts of the property. An EPC allows the buyer to assess the building’s energy efficiency. It sets out a rating that can be benchmarked against the average for comparable stock. A poor score may negatively affect the property’s value. A recommendation report must accompany the EPC unless there is no reasonable potential to improve performance against the energy standards currently in force. However, owners are not legally obliged to follow the recommendations. See our Overviews: Energy performance certificates and minimum energy efficiency requirements (MEES)—overview and Energy and renewable apparatus in buildings—overview, and our Practice Notes: Energy performance certificates (EPCs)—what are they and when are they required? and Energy performance certificates (EPCs)—issues for commercial landlords and tenants. Do the Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations...

The Green Deal The Green Deal was a government initiative enabling households and businesses to carry out energy efficiency upgrades to domestic and commercial buildings using a ‘pay-as-you-save’ model. Approved Green Deal providers sourced low-cost finance for the works with no advance payment required. Instead, the cost of the efficiency measures was added to the property’s energy bills and settled in instalments by the energy bill payer, in accordance with the Green Deal Golden Rule, namely that the anticipated monetary savings from the measures would be equal to or exceed the charges applied to the bill. Responsibility for repayment is attached to the property itself, and therefore passes to any new owner or occupier on sale or letting. The Energy Company Obligation (ECO), which replaced the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target and the Community Energy Saving Programme, operated alongside the Green Deal. The Green Deal was brought in across Great Britain by the Energy Act 2011 (EnA 2011) and given effect through various regulations and orders, including the Green Deal...

Under an asset purchase, the purchaser takes only the selected assets and assumes only the specific liabilities it opts to accept, as detailed in the asset purchase agreement. After completion, issues highlighted by due diligence may require the purchaser to address environmental, health and safety (EHS) matters. For example, the purchaser might need to transfer or apply for a permit, join a recognised packaging waste compliance scheme, or strengthen health & safety documentation following completion. Typical post-completion EHS actions in asset purchase transactions include the following: transferring environmental permits verifying whether the deal triggers any new duties under environmental regimes, such as producer responsibility, energy efficiency and carbon schemes tackling points raised in environmental audits and reports, and any contractual conditions advising on the scope of environmental insurance and other risk-mitigation strategies putting in place reliance agreements or collateral warranties to allow reliance on environmental reports Transfer of environmental permits In an asset sale, the name of the operator/permit...

In this issue: Air emissions and climate change Contamination and pollution Energy efficiency and buildings Energy for environmental lawyers Environmental information Environmental taxes, reliefs and incentives ESG and sustainability Hazardous substances and chemicals Nature, biodiversity and habitat conservation Waste Water, flooding and drainage Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Air emissions and climate change Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR)-UK government publishes Business Model documentation On 27 August 2025, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) released a suite of papers on its proposed Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR) Business Model and accompanying policy. The Lexis+ Energy team, working with Navraj Singh Ghaleigh, Senior Lecturer in Climate Law at the University of Edinburgh Law School, set out the context for the GGR Business Model; its relationship with the Power BECCS Business Model; the technologies the GGR framework intends to encompass; its legal footing and principal features; and how...

In this issue: Air emissions and climate change Energy efficiency of products Energy for environmental lawyers ESG and sustainability Hazardous substances and chemicals Marine Nature, biodiversity and habitat conservation Waste Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Air emissions and climate change Defra opens consultation on industrial emissions permitting reforms The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has begun consulting on plans to modernise England’s environmental permitting regime for industrial emissions. The package aims to foster innovation, adopt agile standards, secure proportionate and coherent regulation, boost regulator effectiveness and efficiency, and deliver a transparent system. Suggested measures include a new registration route for low-risk installations, flexible site permits setting overall emissions caps, and faster approvals for time‑limited technology trials. The proposals reflect the Corry Review’s critique of regulatory inefficiency. The Environment Agency intends to roll out changes that could cut permit queues from months to days and lower...

In this issue: Energy efficiency and buildings Energy for environmental lawyers Environmental enforcement and prosecutions ESG and sustainability Hazardous substances and chemicals Nature, biodiversity and habitat conservation Waste Waste producer responsibility regimes Water, flooding and drainage Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Latest Q&A Energy efficiency and buildings The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has issued its 2025 post‑implementation review (PIR) of the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/1643). Using Phase 3 compliance notifications from the Environment Agency, together with unpublished interim data from Phase 3 action plans, and building on the 2020 PIR, it recommends holding off any major amendments to the ESOS Regulations until a full evaluation ends in May 2026, after which a comprehensive PIR will be completed. The research evaluates how energy audits and reporting identify and deliver energy efficiency savings across organisations. See: LNB News 14/08/2025 6...

This Practice Note outlines how the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 (MEES Regs 2015), SI 2015/962, affect both landlords and tenants of non-domestic private rented (NDPR) property. It explores the interface between the MEES Regs 2015, SI 2015/962 and the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954), considers challenges for landlords and tenants when subletting NDPR premises that are substandard, examines points arising for a landlord with a consent exemption on assignment, highlights due diligence considerations, and flags issues in real estate finance transactions where the asset is substandard (that is, holds an energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of ‘F’ or ‘G’). It forms part of our Practical Notes series on minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES). Under MEES Regs 2015, SI 2015/962, reg 27, a landlord must not let substandard NDPR property unless: 'relevant energy efficiency improvements' have been carried out (MEES Regs 2015, SI 2015/962, reg 29); or an exemption applies (consent, devaluation or temporary exemptions). ...

Background—the First to Fifth Energy Packages Under Article 194 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the Member States have, among other matters, granted the EU powers to ensure the operation of the energy market, protect security of energy supply, advance energy efficiency and saving and the development of novel and renewable energy forms, and support the interconnection of national energy networks. Article 194 further requires the European Parliament and the Council to adopt the measures needed to realise these goals. Accordingly, since the 1990s, a sequence of legislative packages has been enacted to create a shared EU-level rulebook to open national energy markets. These are set out below: First Energy Package — adopted between 1996 and 1998, initiating the first liberalisation of national energy markets Second Energy Package — adopted in 2003, enabling industrial and domestic customers to choose their energy suppliers from a broader field of competitors Third Energy Package — adopted in 2009, introducing: ...

Structure of the EU electricity system EU rules on electricity govern two core spheres: the physical set-up for generation, movement and consumption of power (often termed the electricity network or grid), and the organisation of electricity markets (i.e. the flow of money). Electricity moves through the EU grid in broad stages: Generation—the creation of electricity using, for instance, fossil fuels, solar, wind, nuclear or geothermal sources Transport—the conveyance of electricity across the network, typically divided into: Transmission—long-distance transfer on the extra high-voltage and high-voltage interconnected system, with delivery to final customers or to distributors in view Distribution—movement from transmission networks and distribution to consumers. Electricity from smaller renewable installations, such as solar and wind, is generally injected into the distribution networks Supply—the sale (including resale) of electricity to wholesale customers (who purchase for onward sale) and to final customers (who purchase for their own use) As a straightforward analogy,...

Memorandum prepared by [ Name of Firm ] for the directors of [ insert company name ] (the Company) providing guidance on annual environmental reporting obligations and disclosures 1 Scope This memorandum sets out the principal environmental disclosures the Company must present in its annual report and accounts. It reviews and explains the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) obligation to provide climate-related disclosures in line with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), the need to state greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, energy consumption and actions to improve energy efficiency under the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) regime, and other environmental legislation [ , as well as relevant principles and provisions within the QCA Corporate Governance Code (QCA Code) and the Wates Corporate Governance Principles for Large Private Companies (Wates Principles) ]. It also offers practical guidance for companies when assembling their environmental disclosures for reporting purposes. [ As an AIM company, the Company is subject to continuing disclosure obligations under the AIM...

Memorandum prepared by [ Name of Firm ] For the directors of [ insert company name ] (the Company) advising on annual environmental reporting 1 Scope This memorandum outlines the principal environmental disclosures the Company must include within its annual report and accounts. It addresses the UK Listing Rule and Companies Act 2006 ( CA 2006 ) obligations to present climate-related information consistent with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures ( TCFD ). It also covers the duty to disclose greenhouse gas ( GHG ) emissions, energy consumption and measures to improve energy efficiency under the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting ( SECR ) framework, together with other environmental legislation [ , and relevant principles and provisions from the UK Corporate Governance Code ( UKCG Code ) ] . In addition, it provides practical guidance to assist companies in compiling robust environmental disclosures. As a listed entity, the Company is further subject to continuing disclosure duties under the UK Listing Rules, the Disclosure Guidance...

Definitions Environment – any or all of the following media: (a) air, including air inside buildings or other structures and at levels below or above ground; (b) land, covering buildings and any other structures or erections upon, in or beneath it, together with soil and anything beneath the land's surface; and (c) water, including groundwater and surface water, plus any ecological systems or living organisms (humans included) sustained by those media. EHS Laws – all relevant legislation (whether civil, criminal or administrative), statutes, statutory instruments, directives, regulations, common law, codes of practice and guidance notes (having legal effect), and any instructions or decisions of any court or regulatory authority that concern EHS Matters. EHS Matters – any issues connected with the Environment, energy efficiency, climate change, or health and safety...

Is an EPC required on lease renewal for a domestic property? An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) assigns a dwelling an energy efficiency band from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient). The rating comes from a detailed calculation that considers multiple elements, including the property’s age and type, how it is built, and its insulation and heating systems. The Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 (EPB Regs 2012), SI 2012/3118, reg 6, provide, subject to specified exemptions, that an EPC must be made available to a tenant when a building is let. This requirement took effect on 9 January 2013. Despite EPB Regs 2012, SI 2012/3118, reg 6, current Government guidance on Energy Performance Certificates for the marketing, sale and let of dwellings states that an EPC is not needed for a lease renewal or an extension. That said, where the renewal is an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) granted after 1 October 2015, the landlord must have supplied the tenant with an EPC before...

An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) An EPC assesses how energy efficient a building is, scoring it from A to G, with A representing the greatest efficiency. It is illegal for a landlord to let a commercial property with an F or G efficiency rating unless a valid exemption is in place. A landlord must hold an EPC in these situations: when renting out or selling the premises; when a building that was under construction is completed; or when changing the number of areas intended for separate occupation and this includes providing heating, air conditioning or ventilation systems. An EPC is valid for ten years. Certain exemptions apply, including both short and long tenancies...

UK Within the UK, Defra leads the development of new regulations arising from initial studies that prioritise gains in energy efficiency. These rules are policed by the National Measurement Office (NMO). EU Ecodesign and energy-using requirements The European EuP Directive 2005/32/EC acted as a framework, with precise performance benchmarks and test methods defined in accompanying implementing measures and regulations. It was later replaced by the Eco-Design Directive 2009/125/EC. In the UK, the 2005 Directive was transposed via the Ecodesign for Energy-Using Products 2007, SI 2007/2037, which was in turn revoked by the Eco-Design for Energy-Related Products Regulations 2010, SI 2010/2617. The 2010 Regulations transpose Directive 2009/125/EC into UK law, aiming to enhance product environmental performance across the whole life cycle by embedding environmental considerations at the earliest stages of design. The EU is setting minimum energy and environmental performance standards for more than twenty product groups, including lighting. Detailed technical provisions appear in the regulations, while the Market Transformation Programme (MTP) offers further information and the evidence...