Firms' poor energy efficiency putting UK emission targets at risk, says Carbon Trust

Britain's non-domestic buildings must improve their average E grade energy efficiency rating to a C grade by 2020 and an A grade by 2050 if the UK is to meet its legally binding emissions targets.

That is the conclusion of a new report from the Carbon Trust to be released later today, which argues that a programme of energy efficiency improvements for commercial buildings offers one of the most cost-effective means of cutting carbon emissions.

The report found that currently 18 per cent of the UK's emissions can be attributed to the non-domestic building sector, which is a figure that has not improved in 20 years.

It argues that a national energy efficiency programme could cut the carbon footprint of non-domestic buildings by more than a third by 2020, saving the economy £4bn.

"Commercial and public buildings offer the UK a big bang for its carbon reduction buck," said Stuart Farmer, head of buildings strategy at the Carbon Trust. "But it won't just happen on its own; energy efficiency needs to be the first and second priority."

Currently, the government is rolling out Display Energy Certificates (DECs) and Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to all non-domestic buildings by 2015 to help provide transparency of energy performance across the sector. It has also introduced new rules that will require all new non-domestic buildings to meet zero carbon standards by 2018.

But the Carbon Trust report argues that a wider range of energy efficiency measures, including improved lighting and heating controls, must be implemented across all 1.8 million non-domestic buildings in the UK within the next 10 years if the UK's emissions targets are to be met.

The government-backed company recommended that a minimum building standard should be introduced to ensure all non-domestic buildings achieve an F-rated certificate or better by 2020.

Beyond 2020, it says more costly measures - such as triple glazing and ground source heat pumps - must become standard in both new and existing buildings.

It also advises that the caps on emissions that will be imposed on about 5,000 businesses through the imminent Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) should be tightened to give businesses the incentive to take up cost-effective energy efficiency measures.

In addition, the report said that a hands-on advice and support service should be introduced to help owners and users of F and G-rated buildings to accelerate improvements, while a national programme led by the energy suppliers should be set up to install simple, low-cost energy efficiency measures in SME buildings.

Neil Bentley, director of business environment at the CBI, said that some government intervention was essential to improve the energy efficiency of commercial buildings.

"Many businesses, like homeowners, face major barriers in finding the capital to invest in energy efficient measures such as energy management systems, efficient lighting and heating systems," he said. "The government needs to work closely with business to provide the right incentives to help overcome the upfront costs."