[05.04.2022] ENPOR Lunch Talk – Tailored Measures for Energy Poverty

Read more and watch the recording of the April 5th ENPOR Lunch Talk with invited guests of the STEP Project how tailored solutions of regional projects can tackle energy poverty needs specific to their national context.

Overview: Energy poverty should be seen as an energy issue, not only viewed through a social lens; with the right legislation, meaningful changes can be made that improve the quality of the European building stock, help to hit Europe’s climate targets, and eradicate energy poverty all at the same time. We explored how local solutions and interest groups inform national measures tackling energy poverty on a short, medium and long term. In this talk show format our guests discussed urgent matters such as immediate and long term response to the energy and gas crisis, working with vulnerable groups and overcoming barriers such as the split incentive including our experiences with the unique format of regional energy action groups (REACT).

Speakers:

  • Bogomil Nikolov, BNAAC ( Българска национална асоциация “Активни потребители – Bulgarian National Consumer Organisation)
  • Petra Cakovska, SOS (Spoločnosť ochrany spotrebiteľov – Slovak Consumer Organisation)
  • Paulo Fonseca, DECO (Portuguese Association for Consumer Protection)

To exchange experiences, our invited guests explained how:

  • BNAAC (Bulgaria) helped to reach the Roma community through studies and workshops in Sofia,
  • DECO (Portugal) has worked hand in hand with local authorities to establish energy advice desks that replicate one-stop-shops,
  • SOS (Slovakia) was instrumental in setting up a dedicated energy ombudsman service for consumers in Slovakia.

The private rented sector remains an area of frustration for most STEP partners. While in some cases energy-saving devices have been provided along with energy advice, the split incentives between tenants and landlords continue to act as a barrier to deep energy retrofits and alleviation of energy poverty. Beyond split incentives, the high upfront costs of renovations, as well as governance rules around renovation of multi-unit buildings highlight that there is a lot that still needs to be tackled through national regulatory framework.

To learn more on STEP’s online training modules, Energy Tip videos and more, read the Blog post by Eoin Kelly, Energy Policy Officer at BEUC.