You say "EPC", I say "EEC". You say "Tomato", I say "Tomato" .... Let's call the whole thing off!

BRIGHT SPARKS of the Month Award goes the anonymous lady in Playa Flamenca. Me and Mrs Sparks had a chuckle over this email;

"Tony, I am president of an urbanisation in Playa Flamenca. One of the residents has been around to see me today. She has been told by someone that she only has until 1st June to have an IPC fitted, after which she could be fined if Iberdrola do a check. I haven't heard anything about this from anyone else in our area. Is this correct?"

You say "IPC", I say "ICP"... well, she got the date right. Priceless. Watch out for gossip mongers!!

Earth Day 2013 – Climate Change vs. The Money Jungle

TODAY IS Earth Day 2013. Born on 22nd April 1970, Earth Day is 43 years old. “More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world.” claims the American environmental movement, Earth Day Network. 

Climate change is a controversial subject that has just as many sceptics as it has believers. Trying to research the facts leads me to a conclusion that it would be far easier trying to solve who killed JFK. Government forecast models compiled decades ago have proven to be extremely over estimated, though we all bear witness to changes in the weather and evidence of the polar icecaps and glaciers melting. Could it be the debate is more about politics and power rather than science or the truth? 

“People are basically vehicles to just create money, which must create more money, to keep the whole thing from falling apart, which is what’s happening. There is no profit under the current paradigm in saving lives, putting balance on this planet, having justice or peace or anything else. You have to create problems to create profit.” This is the Money Jungle. 

One fact remains uncontested though, that on our current evolutionary path we will run out of energy sometime in the future if we fail to act. We must reduce the production of energy from fossil fuels and increase the production by renewable energy.

Happy Earth Day 

(Note to self: participate in a "civic observance")

Looking at the Big Picture

INITIAL RESPONSE to the new Energy Efficiency Certificate (aka EPC) being introduced by law into Spain on 1st June 2013 has been much as expected and mostly critical. Is it just another excuse for a government tax? Why are the certificates more expensive in Spain than the UK? Would we be better off using the certificates for wall insulation to help save energy? Cynicism aside, let’s consider the bigger picture as to what it is all about. 

Let us be perfectly clear, the EPC is not being introduced to help property owners save money on utility bills, the reason is to cut carbon dioxide (CO²) emissions from buildings. Former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero pledged to cut Spain´s greenhouse gases by 20 per cent by 2020 (compared to 1990 levels). 

Houses in Spain consume 17% of all the energy in the country. The emission of greenhouse gases caused by buildings has grown over 20% since 1990. 38% of the Spanish are not satisfied with insulation against heat and cold from their homes, and 42% also state dissatisfaction with the sound insulation. Moreover, about 60% of Spanish homes have been raised "with no minimum energy efficiency standards" (the first being in 1979). 

In national terms, Spain used to be one of the worst offenders in terms of CO² emissions, with almost a whopping 200% per cent rise between 1971 and 2007. In the first half of 2009, emissions in Spain fell by a 17 per cent, due to industrial slowdown and increased renewable power - an unexpected upside to the current economic crisis. According to the latest data published by the United Nations, Spain is currently number 20 in a list of countries by CO² emissions, producing 1.1% of emissions worldwide. 

The origin of the certificate was instigated at a United Nations conference held in 1992, which became known as the Earth Summit. The parties negotiated an international environmental treaty with the objective to "stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.” In 1997 the Kyoto Protocol set binding obligations on industrialised countries to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. 

The Directive on the energy performance of buildings was published by the European Parliament in 2002 and came into force on 4th January 2006 which required member states to adopt the Energy Performance Certificate. 

The certificate assesses the buildings energy rating, plus gives recommendations on how to cut CO² emissions. From 1st June 2013 vendors and renters are obligated to make that information available to prospective buyers and tenants. This new legislation forces us all to consider the effect of CO² emissions in our homes.

And I'd like to thank the Academy...

SAT 13th APRIL; the announcement in the Boletín Oficial del Estado, the official gazette of the Government of Spain, means we can now start arranging the new Certificado de Eficiencia Energética (aka EPC) for our customers. 

If you are selling a property, or renting a property for more than four months of the year, you need a Certificado de Eficiencia Energética by law after 1st June 2013.

Sparks has employed the professional services of an architect to assist with helping our customers get the certificate. Our architect is registered at the Colegio de Arquitectos de Alicante having graduated with honours obtaining a Bachelor's Degree in Architecture, so you can rest assured our Energy Efficiency Certificate are authentic. Together we offer our clients a first class service at a competitive price, not only with the issuing of the certificate, but also with an added bonus of specialist advice on the best way to save money on your electricity bill. You can read more about energy saving here.

Ted Allen (pictured above), an accountant from Southampton, was our first customer. Whilst on a short golfing holiday with his pals we arranged the Energy Efficiency Certificate for his property in Torrevieja in just a few days. Commenting on our service Ted said "What an excellent trouble free service at a very competitive price. The whole procedure was completed in 4 days. Sparks is a pleasure to deal with"

The price for an Energy Efficiency Certificate is worked out on the total floor area of the property, calculated in square metres. Contact us for a price or more information. 

Scam Alert

NEW PROPERTY legislation often brings out opportunists looking for scams. We are already hearing stories of so-called qualified people offering to provide authorised Energy Efficiency Certificates. Scammers are aided, in part, because the software needed to produce the certificates is easily available on-line and it's free. Beware of fraudsters who are nothing less than architects or engineers.

A certified assessor must be an architect, engineer, or a qualified technician who is authorised to undertake building projects and thermal installations for buildings. The individual will have completed a special government training course on Existing Building Energy Certification, and be trained in the software designed to issue the certificate (this is important because not all architects and engineers are certified).

Both professionals belong to an official provincial association (colegio oficial) and have a member number. Architects must be registered at the colegio in order to be able to offer their services professionally. For the Vega Baja region you can inquire at the Colegio de Arquitectos de Alicante, Plaza de Gabriel Miró, 2, 03001 Alicante, tel. 965 21 84 00, about an architects authenticity.

The same applies with engineers, they all have their professional associations in every province, they must be registered and have a member number.

It is important to use an architect, engineer or technician who is registered at a colegio oficial because the certificate will probably have to be endorsed sometime in the future. AVEN (Agencia Valenciana de la Energía) is not prepared to receive any certificates for the moment, so for the time being a certificate does not need any further processing.

The Energy Efficiency Certificate and the Law

IT’S OFFICIAL… it’s now the law. If you are selling or renting a home you must obtain an Energy Efficiency Certificate (aka EPC), known as a Certificado de Eficiencia Energética, from 1st June 2013. 

Last Saturday, the official gazette of the Government of Spain, Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE), published Royal Decree 235/2013, of 5th April 2013, approving the basic procedure for the certification of energy efficiency of buildings. The publication officially declares the Royal Decree is law. 

If you are selling a home you should obtain a certificate before it is advertised in order to provide prospective buyers with energy performance information about the property. Rentals should obtain a certificate if the property is used over four months of the year. 

The certificate must be issued by a certified assessor who will visit the property to carry out a survey. They should be an architect, engineer, or a qualified technician who is authorised to undertake building projects and thermal installations for buildings. Once the survey is complete the assessor will take a few days to produce the certificate. The cost of the certificate is not set by the government but by the assessor, and  depends on the total floor space of the property. 

AVEN (Agencia Valenciana de la Energía) is the registry of the Comunidad Valenciana which shall be responsible for Certificado de Eficiencia Energética inspection and control. However, AVEN is not yet prepared to receive any certificates, and thus, for the moment, a certificate does not need any other processing. In the future, the certicate will need endorsement from the Official Association of Architects (Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos), but for the moment, endorsement is not compulsory. It is probable that in the future when the registry is in place, that the certificate needs to be endorsed, but this can be done in the future without any problems. 

Failure to comply is an offense under consumer protection law and is punishable according to the General Law on Protection of Consumers and Users and statutory rules. Policing the law will fall to the Autonomous Regions. How quickly and stringently the local authorities implement the new law, only time will tell. 

The Royal Decree makes no reference to the time frame to comply with the new law after 1st June 2013. Bear in mind that policing of the new law will undoubtedly take a while, which will allow a honeymoon period, but failure to comply should only be considered at the owners own risk.

It's the Law... officially

THE OFFICIAL Gazette of the Government of Spain, Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE), yesterday published Royal Decree 235/2013, of 5th April 2013, approving the basic procedure for the certification of energy efficiency of buildings. The publication officially declares the Royal Decree is law. 

Whilst I work my way through the small print, one article is worth highlighting under the basic procedure about properties excluded from obtaining an Energy Efficiency Certificate (aka EPC). It states in the article: 

Excluded from the scope: 

“Buildings for housing or parts of existing buildings, the use of which is less than four months a year, or for a limited time of a calendar year, or with an energy consumption forecast to be less than 25% used throughout year.” 

The article continues, “it will be the responsibility of the owner to keep a record”. 

This mainly affects rental properties. The four months is the total months for the calendar year, and not necessarily consecutive. Holiday rentals should base their decision on whether or not to obtain an Energy Efficiency Certificate upon this information.

Royal Decree approves Energy Certification

ALL HOMES for sale or rent must obtain a Certificado de Eficiencia Energética from 1st June 2013. The new law was enacted this morning by Spanish ministers in a Royal Decree on the Certification for Energy in Existing Buildings. 

In short, the energy efficiency certificate is a document signed by a qualified assessor that contains information about the energy efficiency of a building according to the calculation method defined by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism. 

An Energy Efficiency Certificate (aka EPC) must be obtained before a property is marketed and the information must be included in all advertising. The certificate must also be produced at the signing of the contract of sale. Rentals, including holiday lets, must make a certificate available to tenants. Agents cannot legally offer properties for rent or sale without a certificate. 

Those with property in the UK should be familiar with the certificate. The Energy Performance Certificate or EPC, as it is commonly known there, was introduced on 1st August 2007 into England and Wales as part of the Home Information Pack. When the requirement for HIPs was removed in May 2010, the requirement for EPCs continued. 

"Homes consume 17% of all energy in the country and 38% of Spanish are not satisfied with the insulation in their homes” according to the Minister of Development, Ana Pastor. An Energy Efficiency Certificate analyses the energy consumption of a home and suggests possible improvements to make the building more energy efficient. The information contained in the certificate is summarized by a colour coded bar chart using a scale ranging from A to G, similar to labels found on white goods. 

The most energy efficient homes are in band A and the least energy efficient in band G. Those properties in band A should have the lowest energy bills. The same A to G scale is used to define the impact a home has on the environment. Better-rated homes should have less impact through carbon dioxide (CO²) emissions. The average property in Spain is expected to be band E or F for both ratings. New houses with a good level of energy efficiency should be capable of obtaining a D rating, whilst some old properties will be in the lowest G category.

The Energy Efficiency Certificate is an initiative of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, an international treaty that sets binding obligations on industrialised countries to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Within the treaty Spain is committed to reduce CO² emissions by 20% by the end of 2020. 

According to the latest data published by the United Nations, Spain is number 20 in a list of countries by CO² emissions, producing just over 1% of emissions worldwide. China is number 1 followed by the United States.