New regulations see energy and real estate converge
Mega trends such as the drive for energy efficiency, environmental sustainability and reduction of greenhouse gases are causing a convergence in the real estate and energy markets and the regulations that govern them.
A transition is underway in energy, particularly for heating says Sophia Truong, lawyer, PWC Legal. Speaking to Real Asset Insight’s Richard Betts she said that an emission trading system has been introduced in Germany that imposes costs of CO2 emission on fossil fuel distributors and allows them to pass these on to the consumer. But because tenants have little influence on CO2 efficiency of the buildings that they occupy, a debate ensued about how costs should be shared between landlords and tenants.
The German legislature has also amended the law on building efficiency with innovative rules that enable the introduction of efficient new technologies. The changes have also enabled an approach to energy efficiency that assesses individual buildings in the context of the whole neighbourhood’s energy reduction.
Click on the video above to watch the full interview or listen to the podcast below.
