- Electrification might not strain the grid as much as some fear
- Other sustainable sources may be more expensive and difficult to implement
- Buildings have substantially improved over the past few years
From new construction codes to retrofits for the future, the road to net zero has sparked interest in one of Australia’s most important industries.
The Property Council of Australia’s (PCA) (WA) recent luncheon saw a panel of speakers including Centuria Capital Group’s Annie Scott (State Manager – Facilities), HFM’s (a BGIS Company) Alex Sejournee (Lead Consultant – Stategy), Green Building Council of Australia’s (GBCA) Katherine Featherstone (Senior Manager – Product & Materials), NABERS Director Carlos Flores, moderated by PCA’s Director – National Policy, Francesca Muskovic.
Building buzz versus hydrogen hype
The afternoon had one clear message – the road to net zero would be one based on electrification.
The inevitable question was asked of the panel: “What about hydrogen?”
While of course we should keep an open mind, said NABERS Director, Carlos Flores, he noted that hydrogen is currently a challenge. Mr Flores said during meetings in Europe, and with big governments, the numbers showed that it would be more expensive and more uncertain.
Importantly, Mr Flores noted that these forecasts said there would not be enough time to produce the hydrogen required to solve both high energy use situations like steel production, and also solve world heating within the 20 to 30 year time frame we have.
Mr Flores said electrification will take about 30 years. If we wait until 2035 to find out that hydrogen will not sufficiently address net-zero targets then we will be a few steps behind.
Many EU countries have set annual electrification targets for homes, and in the situation where, by 2035, hydrogen does become a viable option, full steam ahead with not much ground lost; if not, then significant work on electrification would have been completed anyway.
On the home front, GBCA said one of its initiatives to move homes away from gas included showing the capabilities of induction cooktops. One anecdote included the electrification of the usually gas-intensive wok-style cooking.
Are we doing enough?
HFM’s (A BGIS Company) Alex Sejournee said previous conversations may have revolved around “how do you optimise your NABERs rating?” That conversation is no more, now moving instead to decarbonising a building.
Naturally, the question arose: Are we doing enough?
Mr Sejournee said that from a commercial perspective, there have been many improvements since the 2019 National Construction Code (NCC) was released. He said HFM did some modelling around the step change from what a minimum performing building might achieve when converted to a NABERS type metric to the new NCC. He believed it comes to about a minimum five star under the new NCC, previously it was about 3.5 to four star.
Among the shifts in design, Mr Sejournee spoke about how whole facades are now considered as just that, holistically; as opposed to the previous glazing, as separate from the framing, walls, and so on.
Centuria’s Annie Scott made a poignant point: a number of the buildings constructed now are likely to still be around in 2050.
As newer buildings come online in the future, they will inevitably meet higher and higher standards, and, of course, there will be an increasing gap between the newer stock and the current.
It will be more challenging for the existing built-in environment to match what is being built. One of those challenges cited includes thermal envelopes.
Ms Scott also highlighted the importance of understanding the building code and how an asset fits into the environment; one does not want the building to become “stranded” because it was not electrified and retrofitted rapidly, or not optimised, making competing with newer buildings more difficult.
Drivers of change
It came as no surprise that there is an appetite for everyone to muck in, from the various levels of government to industry and end users.
Much progress from many sides has been made, with the discussion behind drivers of change eliciting some food for thought, and certainly allaying of fears.
Summer is the season for power pain and strain, with winter warming weighing well below the high demands of the high-noon sun.
Mr Flores said electrification is not a threat to the grid, partly because electrification means replacing heating, and, for most of Australia, heating happens in winter, well outside the electricity peaks of summer.
In places like Perth, Mr Flores added, with the electrification of heating, you will definitely see electricity use rise throughout winter, but it will be nowhere near the actual peak that you see in summer, so from that perspective, it is not so bad.
Ms Scott said more education for the end users could be part of the equation. She said that there is a gap in knowledge between those who know a lot about electrification and the tenants and end users.
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*Disclosure: The Property Tribune attended the luncheon as a guest of the Property Council WA.
