France

Current Codes

France Thermal Regulation RT 2012

Compliance Verification:  Every building is required to have an Energy Efficiency Certificate, which provides a diagnostic of the building’s general information, performance, recommendations, and additional information. This is to be done by a certified professional, who has no relationship with the ownership of the building. A new certificate must be obtained every 10 years, and must be made available whenever possession of the building changes hands. For public buildings over 1000 square meters, the certificate must be displayed.

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History

Prior to the implementation of the 2012 regulations, buildings had to comply with 2005 thermal regulations. RT 2005 set insulation, envelope, and HVAC standards for energy efficiency for all new and existing buildings in France. It met the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. According to ACEEE, France has had prescriptive building energy efficiency requirements since 1995.

In 2008, France published an energy efficiency action plan that set national goals for efficiency to be reached by 2020. It justified the use of codes and other policies to help meet these goals.

As a member of the EU, France was also required to comply with the Electronic Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which was passed in 2002. The new regulation set goals of an immediate 15% efficiency rate, and a 40% efficiency rate by 2020. It also set minimum regulations for existing buildings and defined necessary renovations. To run parallel with the EPBD, France established special categorizations for efficient buildings: High Energy Performance (HPE) and Very High Energy Performance (THPE). France also established “White Certificate Trading,” requiring energy suppliers to meet mandated targets for energy savings through their customers, however necessary.

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