Energy Saving Initiative

The Spanish Ministry of Housing and Urban Spaces has announced grants for house owners who wish to upgrade their property and reduce dependence on fossil fuels.

Comprehensive Residential Building and Housing Rehabilitation Aid Programme

The rehabilitation programme for economic and social recovery in residential environments, forms part of the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan (PRTR), which aims to promote the rehabilitation of apartment buildings, houses and neighbourhoods. The distribution of Next Generation EU funds to the eventual beneficiaries will be managed through the Autonomous Communities, such as Andalucia, based on agreements proportional to the number of households in each region. 

Objectives and Targets

The programme is ambitious. It aims to achieve 510.000 housing renovation actions by the second quarter of 2026, averaging 71.000 dwellings per year. In comparison, 31.100 homes were refurbished in 2019. The government aims to increase this activity tenfold by 2030 to reach 300.000 homes annually.

The primary goal is to reduce non-renewable energy consumption in households by at least 30% and to decarbonise and lower heating and cooling demand by at least 7%. To verify the reduction in consumption, an expert must issue an energy certificate for the house or building before and after the renovation. Key methods include improving building envelopes, installing insulation in façades and roofs and replacing window frames to prevent heat loss.

Facilitating Implementation

To meet these objectives, the Government has approved a Royal Decree and, subsequently a Law, which include measures and programmes designed to support eligible actions under the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (RRM) approved by the EU, which was designed, in part, to address the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. These texts detail two main investments of the PRTR focused on the residential sector: €3.420 million euros for residential rehabilitation and €1.000 million euros to construct 20.000 social housing units for rental. 

Legislative Framework

The Royal Decree-Law on urgent measures to boost building renovation activity enhances the ability of homeowners' associations to undertake renovation and energy efficiency improvement works. It includes measures to facilitate access to bank finance for owners and residents' associations through a new line of ICO guarantees and provides tax incentives for works improving energy efficiency in homes and residential buildings. The tax deductions have an allocated budget of €450 million.

Importantly, aid granted through the various programmes, including those funded by NextGenerationEU, will not be included in the taxable base of personal income tax.

Funding and Distribution

Each Autonomous Region, such as Andalucia will distribute these funds to final beneficiaries either by signing agreements with local councils for direct subsidies or by publishing calls for applications. Beneficiaries may include as well as property owners, tenants, residents' associations, public and private companies, and public administrations. Projects are selected based on first-come first-served until funds are exhausted.

Overall Aim

This comprehensive programme aims to significantly improve the energy efficiency and overall quality of residential buildings and housing, contributing to economic and social recovery while promoting sustainable living environments.