Shri Piyush Goyal launches Energy Conservation Building Code 2017

On June 19, 2017, Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines launched the Energy Conservation Building Code 2017 (ECBC 2017) which prescribes the energy performance standards for new commercial buildings to be constructed across India.

Salient Features of Energy Conservation Building Code 2017 (ECBC 2017):

Objective: ECBC 2017 aims to optimise energy savings with the comfort levels for occupants, and prefers life-cycle cost effectiveness to achieve energy neutrality in commercial buildings.

Developed by: ECBC 2017 has been developed by Ministry of Power and Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) with technical support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the U.S. – India bilateral Partnership to Advance Clean Energy – Deployment Technical Assistance (PACE-D TA) Program.

• The updated version of ECBC provides current as well as futuristic advancements in building technology to further reduce building energy consumption and promote low-carbon growth.
• The code sets parameters for builders, designers and architects to integrate renewable energy sources in building design with the inclusion of passive design strategies.
• In order for a building to be considered ECBC-compliant, it would need to demonstrate minimum energy savings of 25%. Additional improvements in energy efficiency performance would enable the new buildings to achieve higher grades like ECBC Plus or Super ECBC status leading to further energy savings of 35% and 50%, respectively.

Benefits of Energy Conservation Building Code 2017 (ECBC 2017):

Adoption of ECBC 2017 for new commercial building construction throughout the country will lead to an estimated 30% – 50% reduction in energy use by 2030.

• This will translate to energy savings of about 300 Billion Units by 2030 and peak demand reduction of over 15 GW in a year.
• Consequential reduction will be equivalent to expenditure savings of Rs 35,000 crore and 250 million tonnes of CO2 reduction.

Quick Facts about Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE):

Bureau of Energy Efficiency is an agency of the Government of India, under the Ministry of Power.

• It was created in March 2002 under the provisions of 2001 Energy Conservation Act.
• BEE is responsible for developing programs which will increase the conservation and efficient use of energy in India.
• Headquarters of BEE is located in New Delhi.