Thermal Rehabilitation in Bucharest

Thousands of residents of Bucharest have benefitted from the Bucharest Sector 1 programme which aims to improve the energy efficiency of apartments and public buildings in the Romanian capital.

The work involved insulating walls and roofs and installing double-glazed windows in the residential blocks, leading them to be upgraded from building energy efficiency class G to class B or A. Extensive insulation work has been carried out on 839 residential blocks — containing 42 359 apartments in total — as well as 140 public facilities, which include schools and hospitals. The scheme is expected to cut the energy consumption of buildings by about half, help families and local authorities to reduce their energy costs and in doing so make a valuable contribution towards Romania’s environmental commitments.

Some 27 kindergartens, 37 primary schools, 28 high schools and four hospitals were also renovated and insulated. New efficient boilers were installed and connected to the centralised municipal distribution system. An energy audit for all public buildings was also carried out.

The Bucharest sector 1 – Thermal rehabilitation program was one of the finalists for the 2017 EU Sustainable Energy Awards, established as a recognition for outstanding innovation in energy efficiency and renewables.