The 2024 recast of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) promotes policies that will help achieve a highly energy efficient building stock by 2050. This will create a stable environment for investment decisions, enabling consumers and businesses to make more informed decisions to save energy and money.

A key measure within the recast EPBD is the introduction of the calculation of life-cycle Global Warming Potential (GWP), which is an assessment of the overall greenhouse gas emissions associated with a new building. The life-cycle GWP calculation includes both operational and embodied carbon emissions, along with some other key metrics, calculated over the building’s entire life-cycle. Results are reported in kg of CO2 equivalent per m² of useful floor area, over a 50-year timeframe reference study period.

To fulfil this requirement Ireland is required to develop a life-cycle GWP calculation methodology and an embodied carbon database of building materials.

These tools:

• help determine the embodied carbon of the building materials used in a building from construction, usage, renovation and demolition.
• allow designers to optimise the design of new buildings to minimise harmful environmental impacts.
• ensure that constructors of new buildings report the life-cycle GWP of the materials used in the construction.

The recast EPBD requires the life-cycle GWP of a building to be included in the Building Energy Rating (BER) from:

• January 2028 for all new buildings with a useful floor area larger than 1000m2
• January 2030 for all new buildings

Following a public consultation in 2025, the approved version of the life-cycle GWP calculation methodology and guidance have now been published on SEAI's website:

• Life-Cycle Global Warming Potential (GWP) | SEAI
• Life-Cycle Global Warming Potential (GWP) Calculation for Buildings

Further useful resources:

• TII Climate Impact Screening Assessment Tool for Different Project types - Transport Infrastructure Ireland
• EU Levels Level(s) - Green Forum - European Commission