Dr Samantha Smith holds a BSocSci, LLB, LLM, and PhD (Law) from the University of Cape Town. Skilled in socio-legal analysis and writing, she previously worked in investigative legal research, with a special focus on animal law and environmental policy. As the firm's chief content writer and legal editor, Samantha is responsible for writing and or editing all STBB content, including all social media, newsflashes, newsletters, articles for publication in magazines and online portals, tenders and proposals, legal updates and presentations, webinar and podcast advertisements, new professional bios, brochures, information sheets, content for special projects, and various email publications.

Pulse | Deadline looms for commercial building owners to declare energy usage

After an initial postponement, the deadline for owners of private buildings (and accounting officers of public buildings) used for commercial purposes to comply with energy performance certification, is fast approaching.

In 2020, government promulgated the Regulations for the Mandatory Display and Submission of Energy Performance Certificates for Buildings (‘the Regulations’) in terms of section 19 of the National Energy Act to enhance energy efficiency in buildings and reduce carbon emissions. Under the Regulations, it is mandatory for all registered owners of commercial buildings – and the accounting officers of buildings owned, operated, or occupied by an organ of state – to publicly display an energy performance certificate (‘EPC’) at the entrance to these buildings.

An EPC, which is issued by an accredited body in accordance with specified certification requirements, demonstrates how much energy is used to power a building. To obtain an EPC, all forms of energy usage, including electricity generated by the national grid, gas, back-up generators, or solar panelling, are assessed to determine a building’s energy performance.

Under the Regulations, ‘energy performance’ is defined as the ‘net energy consumed in kilowatt hours per square metre per year to meet the [various] needs associated with the use of a building’, namely cooling, heating, lighting, and ventilation. Accordingly, an EPC is intended to assist building owners and accounting officers to identify areas for energy improvement and ensure that commercial buildings are economically sustainable.

Per the Regulations, two important deadlines are approaching:

  1. Accounting officers and commercial building owners must register the size and class of all of their buildings on the National Building Energy Performance Register (‘NBEPR’) by 3rd August 2024; and
  2. All commercial building owners are required to publicly exhibit and submit an EPC for their buildings to the South African National Energy Development Institute (‘SANEDI’) for uploading to the NBEPR by 7th December 2025.

For clarity, the deadlines apply to privately-owned buildings with a net floor area of more than 2 000 square metres, which are used for commercial purposes, including offices, places of public assembly, or entertainment, and have not undergone ‘major renovation’ in the last two years. Additionally, the Regulations extend to public buildings used for commercial purposes, provided the net floor area exceeds 1 000 square metres and the buildings have not undergone any major renovation in the preceding two years.

Notably, the deadline to display an EPC was extended by three years due in part to the glaring lack of inspection bodies accredited with the South African National Accredited System. To ameliorate this gap, the Department of Electricity and Energy has formally requested EPC professionals to register on its system to speed up the certification process.

According to SANEDI, less than 4 000 of the country’s estimated 250 000 to 350 000 non-residential buildings have been registered with fewer than 3 000 EPCs issued. Although certification may appear to be another cost for property owners, sustainability experts aver that improving a property’s EPC rating has significant benefits. For instance, it reduces energy costs and protects the owner from increased fees and changing regulatory requirements. Further, the implementation of energy-efficient measures increases the property’s marketability and re-sale value.

Given that non-compliance is an offence and may result in the imposition of a maximum fine of R5 million, five years’ imprisonment, or both, it is prudent for all commercial building owners to adhere to the deadlines delineated above.

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