The service and housing sector stands for 40 % of the total energy consumption in Sweden and extensive measures ought to be made to reduce this number. Measures have been ongoing in this this sector during a relatively long period with the objective in sight that the EU implemented for the year 2020. There is a great focus on technical development that is applied to new construction projects but the measures to improve the energy performance in existing buildings are also an important area for the real estate companies. The European Council has implemented directives that will drive the issue forward regarding energy consumption in the housing sector. Several studies indicate that energy efficiency in existing buildings can be made but there are split opinions regarding energy savings, profitability and what incentives encourage companies to make these investments What underlying causes make companies want to invest in making existing buildings more energy efficient?What kinds of energy efficiencies are being made? Which factors may affect decisions regarding investments in energy efficiency? The purpose of this essay is to examine how real estate companies are undertaking energy efficiencies in existing building, how the process for these investments may look regarding what types of energy efficiencies that is being performed and what type of investment calculations that is being used.The essay is a qualitative study with exploratory purpose and has an abductive approach. The studies primary data has been gathered through interviews with respondents from 9 different real estate companies. The informants have different positions but a strong relation to energy efficiency. The study indicates that real estate companies have a great focus on performing energy efficiency in existing buildings in their property stock to reach internal environmental goals and because there is a profit to be made by lowering operating costs through energy savings. The buildings specific preconditions dictate to a large extent what type of energy efficiencies that are being performed but in most cases there must be a profitability in the investments for them to be made. In some cases, the energy efficiencies are not necessarily cost effective but they are presumed to make the real estate companies reach their environmental goals and for their business to be run in a sustainable way.
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:hh-34192 |
Date | January 2017 |
Creators | Norman, Marcus, Sintikakis, Josef |
Publisher | Högskolan i Halmstad, Högskolan i Halmstad |
Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
Language | Swedish |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
Format | application/pdf |
Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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