1. Prioritization of energy efficiency

The directive emphasizes energy efficiency as a basic principle in EU energy policy. The aim is to reduce energy consumption by a further 11.7% by 2030 compared to the EU reference scenario of 2020. EU Member States are obliged to take energy efficiency into account in important policy and investment decisions, ensuring that energy savings play a vital role in national policies.

2. Strengthening the obligation in connection with energy saving

The revised directive doubled the annual energy savings obligation until 2028. EU member states must therefore achieve cumulative savings in final energy consumption according to the following schedule:

• 0.8% per year (2021 – 2023)

• 1.3% per year (2024-2025)

• 1.5% per year (2026-2027)

• 1.9% per year (2028 – 2030)

3. The fight against energy poverty

The directive places greater emphasis on alleviating energy poverty. EU member states are obliged to raise consumer awareness and provide them with information on energy efficiency. This should strengthen the position of consumers and thus increase the ability to use energy efficient solutions.

4. Expansion of energy audit obligations

The scope of energy audit obligations has been expanded to include all companies that consume energy above a certain threshold. This means that even small and medium-sized enterprises will have to carry out an energy audit if there is a predisposition to a significant energy saving potential.

5. Monitoring and reporting on energy performance of data centers

The directive introduces the obligation to monitor and report on the energy efficiency of data centers. The European Commission is preparing a database that will collect and publish data relevant to the energy performance and water footprint of data centers. This database will be available during the first reporting deadline on September 15, 2024.

6. National contributions and gap filling mechanism

EU countries must set national contributions taking into account national conditions such as energy intensity, GDP per capita and potential for energy savings. If countries fall behind in providing their national contributions, a newly created "gap-filling mechanism" is activated to ensure that the EU's overall target is met.

Project financing as a key factor in energy efficiency and ensuring a sustainable future

The new directive on energy efficiency brings significant changes to support EU member states in achieving ambitious goals in the field of energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In the entire demanding process of increasing energy efficiency with the goal of transitioning to carbon neutrality, the main factor will be financing in terms of sufficiency, but also the setting of various schemes and their combination possibilities. Currently, the Ministry of the Economy of the Slovak Republic has published a call from the resources of the recovery and resilience plan for refinancing and financing of increasing the energy efficiency of public buildings here: Component 19 - Call for submission of requests for the provision of mechanism funds focused on quickly implementable measures for the purpose of increasing the energy efficiency of public buildings