Cyprus building energy performance methodology: A comparison of the calculated and measured energy consumption results

In order to fulfil article 4 of the 2002/91/EC Directive (EPBD) a national methodology for the energy performance of buildings was drafted and approved by the Government of Cyprus in 2009. This methodology is in line with the European standards prepared to facilitate EPBD implementation and follows the asset rating approach that is, it represents the intrinsic annual energy use of a building under standardised conditions. CEN standards leave an option, quite suitable for existing and complex buildings, for operational rating, which is an energy rating based on measured amounts of delivered and exported energy. The calculated and measured rating exhibit advantages and disadvantages and as expected the results of the two approaches vary, since the measured rating approach takes into account the effect of user behaviour, the actual weather conditions and the realized (actual) thermal comfort conditions inside the building. This paper presents the Cyprus legal framework for adopting the EPBD and exhibits the Cyprus methodology for the energy performance of buildings. Moreover the advantages and disadvantages of the asset and operational rating approaches are discussed and a comparison of the results of these two approaches for a selected number of dwellings is presented. One of these cases is also examined with respect to the climatic conditions, by changing the climatic zone in which the building is erected. The latter reveals the effect of climate on the calculated energy requirements of the building for both heating and cooling

Cyprus energy policy: The road to the 2006 world renewable energy congress trophy

Cyprus is a small island situated in the north-eastern Mediterranean with no indigenous conventional energy sources, away from interconnected networks of electricity and gas. Recently, Cyprus won the prestigious World Renewable Energy Congress Trophy for its remarkable efforts and initiatives to increase the contribution of renewable energy sources (RES) to the county's energy mix. This paper presents the energy system of Cyprus, analyses and reviews the energy policy and the various measures taken by the government for the development and support on the use of RES in the island, which had a decisive role on the judges’ decision for the nomination of the award

Propensity to export and effects on cluster development: A comparative study of the Cyprus and Greek solar thermal clusters

Access to sophisticated demand is critical for cluster upgrading in developing countries. Despite this, the role of exports in cluster development has not been adequately researched. This study tries to answer two questions; what are the factors that increase the propensity of a cluster to successfully engage in exports and how exports affect cluster upgrading. In order to isolate the effect of exports, two clusters are studied, the Cyprus and the Greek solar thermal clusters. Despite the fact that these two clusters emerged in similar environments, today they present some distinct differences which could be explained by the different levels of success in exporting. Our findings suggest that the export vision shared among cluster participants, and the collaboration to achieve the vision are of critical importance in penetrating sophisticated export markets. This study highlights the positive influence of exports on cluster development and provides managers and policy makers with an indication of which factors contribute to successful exporting

Cyprus solar water heating cluster: A missed opportunity?

Cyprus is often called the “sun island” because of the amount of sunshine received all year round. The abundance of solar radiation together with a good technological base has created favourable conditions for the exploitation of solar energy on the island. This led to the development of a pioneering solar collector industry in Cyprus, which in the mid-1980s was flourishing. The result was an outstanding figure of installed solar collector area per inhabitant. Nowadays, Cyprus is cited as the country with the highest solar collector area installed per inhabitant, worldwide. This means that the local market for solar thermal collectors (for domestic applications) is now rather saturated. It was only rational to assume that Cypriot firms equipped with their gained expertise and leading edge would have safeguarded a sustainable growth and have an international orientation, focusing on exports in an emerging European and eastern Mediterranean thermal solar market. Unfortunately, this is not the case today. This paper reviews the economic performance and the competitiveness of Cyprus and the evolution of the solar water heating (SWH) industry using the cluster theory of Michael Porter. Its aim is to give insight and explanations for the success of the sector domestically, its failure with regards to exporting activity, pinpoint the industry in the European map and finally give recommendations for the cross the boarders commercial success of the industry

The impact of Energy Performance Certificates on building deep energy renovation targets

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) on the renovation of buildings. Thus, through the European project ENERFUND, 2 online web-based surveys were conducted in 12 countries of the European Union. It was shown that the results varied significantly both between countries and age groups and, that, on average, EPCs did play a role both in renovation decisions and whether to rent/buy a certain flat. In addition, this paper presents major key drivers and parameters related to energy renovation investment mobilisation and suggests actions that can contribute to the promotion of investments for deep energy renovation of buildings. Furthermore, it highlights potential benefits and effectiveness of using retrofitting online tools, such as the ENERFUND tool, pinpoints market failures in the building sector and provides suggestions on increasing the deep energy renovation market in Europe

Comparison between measured and calculated energy performance for dwellings in a summer dominant environment

The objective of this study is to present a comparison between the measured and the calculated energy performance of dwellings. For this purpose, the energy consumption of ten dwellings is measured for one year. The added value of this work is that it is performed in a summer dominant environment. The energy needs of the same dwellings are also calculated by means of the methodology based on European Standards described in the CEN/TR 15615:2008 technical report. According to the findings of this study, a large gap exists between the calculated and the measured energy consumption of the examined dwellings. In order to evaluate the reasons for this deviation, a detailed analysis of the heating and cooling loads of the dwellings is performed. The intermittent heating of the building is found to be simulated accurately by the employed methodology, whereas the comparison between the calculated and the measured cooling loads reveals a large deviation of about 150%. Based on the findings of this study, a factor of 0.6 should be adopted in the case of cooling schedule, compared to the heating operation of the buildin

Classification of residential buildings in Cyprus based on their energy performance

The significance of the building sector in terms of energy consumption is well acknowledged. Scientific studies have shown that the potential of energy savings in the building sector is quite significant. In this view the knowledge of how the building stock of Cyprus behaves in terms of energy consumption is quite valuable. This knowledge will assist policy makers to formulate targeted measures aiming the improvement of energy efficiency and will provide valuable information for setting current legal standards and benchmarks in the energy performance certificate, a requirement of the 2002/91/EC Directive. Unfortunately, the existing knowledge on this subject is quite poor. As a remedy, and in order to improve our knowledge on the subject, a research project supported by the Research Promotion Foundation under the 2008 call is in operation since December 2008. This study will present the outline, the goals and the proposed methodology of the research project “Classification of buildings in Cyprus based on their energy performance” and will exhibit the initial findings of the survey questionnaire regarding the energy behavior and other characteristics of the residential building stock of Cyprus

Classification of buildings in Cyprus based on their energy performance

Presented at 4th International Conference on Sustainable Devlopment and Planning, 2009, 13 - 15 May, CyprusThis paper describes the work that will be done in a research project, which will facilitate the implementation of the EPBD through the calculation of the existing Cyprus Building Stock energy behaviour. This will be achieved through the selection of a representative sample of 500 housing units and the collection of data through questionnaires, followed by statistical analysis of the data and the interpretation of the results. The key parameters that will form the different clusters are climatological zone, type, age and size of each housing unit. The statistical interpretation of the collected dataset will provide insights with regards to the energy behaviour of the building stock for each class. The ultimate goal is to suggest the number of classes for the Energy Performance Certificate and the upper and lower energy consumption limits for each class. Moreover, the formulation of an energy behaviour map, the consideration of the historical development of the buildings behaviour and the improvement of the insulating materials and solutions, will lead to the readjustment of the values, particularly for the best two classes, so as not only to reflect today’s reality, but also to show the intent of the state to improve the level of the construction industry. In this study, the various types and quantities of thermal insulating materials utilized in Cyprus, for the time interval 01/01/08–30/09/08, are also reported. The data were extracted from applications made by individuals who claimed financial subsidy. A random specimen of 400 applications was evaluated: 55% refer to existing housing, and 45% to new buildings. The different kinds of materials used for insulating floorings, walls and roofs, in different regions of the island were evaluated. The principal observation made is the extensive use of double glazing for doors and windows

Classification of buildings in Cyprus based on their energy performance

Presented at 4th International Conference on Sustainable Devlopment and Planning, 2009, 13 - 15 May, CyprusThis paper describes the work that will be done in a research project, which will facilitate the implementation of the EPBD through the calculation of the existing Cyprus Building Stock energy behaviour. This will be achieved through the selection of a representative sample of 500 housing units and the collection of data through questionnaires, followed by statistical analysis of the data and the interpretation of the results. The key parameters that will form the different clusters are climatological zone, type, age and size of each housing unit. The statistical interpretation of the collected dataset will provide insights with regards to the energy behaviour of the building stock for each class. The ultimate goal is to suggest the number of classes for the Energy Performance Certificate and the upper and lower energy consumption limits for each class. Moreover, the formulation of an energy behaviour map, the consideration of the historical development of the buildings behaviour and the improvement of the insulating materials and solutions, will lead to the readjustment of the values, particularly for the best two classes, so as not only to reflect today’s reality, but also to show the intent of the state to improve the level of the construction industry. In this study, the various types and quantities of thermal insulating materials utilized in Cyprus, for the time interval 01/01/08–30/09/08, are also reported. The data were extracted from applications made by individuals who claimed financial subsidy. A random specimen of 400 applications was evaluated: 55% refer to existing housing, and 45% to new buildings. The different kinds of materials used for insulating floorings, walls and roofs, in different regions of the island were evaluated. The principal observation made is the extensive use of double glazing for doors and windows