NABERS Office Energy Rating Expands to Whole Buildings and Tenancies

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19 April 2023

The NABERS UK Energy for Offices rating scheme now includes whole building and tenancy ratings for building owners and office occupiers.

The Building Research Establishment (BRE) has added these new features to the NABERS UK Base Buildings rating, meaning that both owners and occupiers can rate their spaces.

Thanks to these new changes, building owners can now undertake assessments and verify the energy performance of their whole building, which is especially relevant for owners who have single occupancy or for buildings where the metering configuration does not facilitate a base building rating (which covers owners central services, heating and cooling systems and shared services). Office occupiers can also now use NABERS UK to assess the energy used by their tenanted space, which will typically include lighting and power, special tenancy requirements or local air conditioning.

“Until recently, NABERS UK ratings had been restricted to buildings with highly sophisticated energy metering. This expansion makes a huge leap forward in terms of inclusivity in the scheme, providing an easy path for any office building to receive a NABERS UK Energy rating, even those with simpler metering arrangements."

–Carlos Flores 

 Director, NABERS

NABERS, (which stands for the National Australian Built Environment Rating System), was launched in the UK in 2020. It rates the actual energy performance of commercial offices based on metered energy consumption, allowing owners and occupiers to understand their current performance using a Star Rating of 1 to 6.

NABERS Director Carlos Flores said: “Until recently, NABERS UK ratings had been restricted to buildings with highly sophisticated energy metering. This expansion makes a huge leap forward in terms of inclusivity in the scheme, providing an easy path for any office building to receive a NABERS UK Energy rating, even those with simpler metering arrangements. Building owners can now certify all their existing office buildings under NABERS UK, and use these to set improvement targets across their entire portfolios. It is an incredibly exciting moment for industry and the environment.”

Picture: a photograph of a modern open plan space in an office building, featuring communal seating areas. Image Credit: Unsplash

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 19 April 2023

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