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environment.gov.au/buildings

National Strategy on Energy Efciency

Australian, state and territory governments agreed to

phase in the disclosure of commercial building energy

efciency through the National Strategy on Energy

Efciency announced in July 2009.

The disclosure scheme will happen in two phases:

Phase one ofce buildings covering 2,000 squaremetres or more

Phase two expanding disclosure to other

commercial building types, including hotels, shops,

schools and hospitals

The parameters for the implementation of phase one

were agreed by governments in November 2009.

Visit www.environment.gov.au/buildings to nd

out more

Email your questions to

commercialbuildings@environment.gov.au

DISCLOSURE OF COMMERCIALBUILDING ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Starting in the second half of 2010, up-to-date energy efciency information will need to be disclosed to

prospective buyers or tenants when ofce space covering 2,000 square metres or more is sold, leased

or sub-leased.

The energy efciency disclosure scheme for commercial buildings is part of an ambitious plan to drive

more energy efcient homes and workplaces.

Image credits Page 1 (L to R): Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) Building

Management (Erica Lauthier, Michelle McAulay, Erica Lauthier)

What difference will disclosure make?

Energy efciency disclosure creates a more informed

market that rewards better performing buildings and

stimulates greater investment in energy efciency.

Disclosure will:

Deliver consistent, credible, comparative and

meaningful information about building energyefciency

Allow energy efciency and energy costs to be

considered by prospective buyers and tenants

Provide building owners with information on how

their building rates, and

Encourage more efcient buildings, lower energy

use and lower emissions.

More sustainable buildings can also deliver

improvements to staff morale, productivity and help

support green jobs.

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environment.gov.au/buildings

When will disclosure occur?

When ofce space is advertised for sale or lease, a

NABERS Energy star rating must be included in the

advertisement.

When prospective buyers or tenants enquire about

ofce space, they must be provided with a valid

building energy efciency certicate as early as

possible in the process, free of charge, whether

requested or not.

Prospective buyers or tenants will also be able to

access the certicate on an online registry using a

unique reference number.

Will ratings be publicly available?NABERS Energy star ratings will be publicly

accessible on the online registry via a searchable

database. However, to access a full building energy

efciency certicate on the registry, you will need a

unique reference number.

Are there any penalties?

Compliance and enforcement details will be specied

in the legislation. Possible enforcement provisions

could include:

a maximum penalty of $100,000 for each offence of

non-disclosure, and

publishing the name of organisations who have not

complied on a publicly accessible website.

When will the scheme commence?

Commonwealth legislation is now being developed to

give effect to the scheme in the second half of 2010,

with a nal commencement date dependant on the

passage of the legislation through Parliament.

Who needs to disclose?

Building owners need to meet the requirements of the

scheme if they are selling or leasing ofce space with

a net lettable area of 2,000 square metres or more.

Tenants who are sub-leasing ofce space with a net

lettable area of 2,000 square metres or more will also

need to comply.

New ofce buildings will be exempt from the scheme

until they have sufcient energy use data to obtain a

rating.

In the legislation, limited exemptions will also be

granted in certain situations, for example where a valid

energy efciency rating cannot be obtained.

What will be disclosed?

In all cases, a building energy efciency certicate

will need to be disclosed. The certicate will generally

include three components:

a National Australian Built Environment Rating1.

System (NABERS) Energy base building star rating,

tenancy lighting details, and2.

energy efciency guidance.3.

The specic components required will depend on thenature of the transaction and will be prescribed in

legislation for the scheme.

If a building has inadequate metering to obtain a base

building rating, a whole building rating will be required.

For ofce buildings that have been substantially

refurbished within the previous 12 months, the scheme

will allow the star rating to be modelled in accordance

with the NABERS Energy simulation protocol.

For sub-leases, the NABERS Energy star rating

will only need to be disclosed if an existing rating isavailable to the tenant who is sub-letting ofce space.

Building energy efciency certicates will remain valid

for 12 months.

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Image credits Page 2 (L to R): Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) Building

Management (Sebastian Immaraj, Sebastian Immaraj, Erica Lauthier)