S.L. 623.1 Art. 2Interpretation.

(1) Unless otherwise stated in these regulations, the definitions prescribed in the Act and in the Technical Document F

referred to in regulation 5, shall also apply.

(2) For the purpose of these regulations and unless the context otherwise requires, the following definitions shall apply:

"Act" means the Building and Construction Authority Act;

"advisory report" means a report made by an energy performance of building (EPB) assessor, accompanying an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), worked on the basis of an assessment of the energy performance of a building or heating or cooling installations, and containing recommendations on how the energy performance of the building or heating or cooling installations may be improved in a cost-effective manner;

"air-conditioning system" means a combination of the components required to provide a form of indoor air treatment, by which temperature is controlled or lowered;

"asset rating" means an energy performance rating based on:

(a) data for the building as actually constructed;

(b) calculations of the energy used in a building for heating, cooling, ventilation, hot water and lighting; and

(c) standard input data in relation to internal and external climates and building occupation, and representing the intrinsic energy performance potential of the building under standardised conditions of weather and building occupation;

"authorised officer" means a person authorised by the Head of the Building and Construction Authority to monitor and ensure compliance with these regulations;

"body corporate" means a body or legal entity, such as an association, company, person, the government, government agencies, corporation, or institution, identified by a particular name and bearing a distinct and separate legal personality or legal status from that of its members, also known as corporate entity;

"boiler" means the combined boiler body-burner unit, designed to transmit to fluids the heat released from burning;

"building" means a roofed construction having walls, for which energy is used to condition the indoor climate, and which may refer to the building as a whole or part thereof which has been designed or altered to be used separately;

"building automation and control system" means a system comprising all products, software and engineering services that can support energy efficient, economical and safe operation of technical building systems through automatic controls and by facilitating the manual management of those technical building systems;

"building element" means a technical building system or an element of the building envelope;

"building envelope" means the integrated elements of a building which separate its interior from the outdoor environment;

"the Building and Construction Board" means the Board as established by article 3 of the Act;

"the Building and Construction Authority" shall have the same meaning as assigned to it under article 5 of the Building and

Construction Authority Act;

"building unit" means a section, floor or apartment within a building which is designed or altered to be used separately;

"cogeneration" means the simultaneous generation in one process of thermal energy and electrical and, or mechanical energy;

"competent authority" means the Building and Construction Authority established under article 5 of the Act, and includes any body or other person acting on its behalf under powers delegated by the Authority under the Act;

"compliance certificate" means a certificate issued by a competent person in certifying that the completed building is compliant with these regulations and with Technical Document F (2023) Part 1 Dwellings Minimum Energy Performance and Building Envelope Requirements, Part 2 Non-Dwellings Minimum Energy Performance and Building Envelope Requirements, and Part 3 Technical Building Systems, as the case may be, and any other instructions issued by the Building and Construction Authority;

"the Commission" means the European Commission as established by the Treaty on the European Union as amended by the Lisbon Treaty of 2009;

"cost-optimal level" means the energy performance level which leads to the lowest cost during the estimated economic lifecycle, where:

(a) the lowest cost is determined taking into account energy-related investment costs, maintenance and operating costs including, where applicable, energy costs and savings, the category of building concerned, earnings from energy produced, throughout the estimated economic lifecycle together with any disposal costs, if applicable; and

(b) the estimated economic lifecycle is determined according to the remaining estimated economic lifecycle of a building where energy performance requirements are set for the building as a whole, or to the estimated economic lifecycle of a building element where energy performance requirements are set for building elements. The cost-optimal level shall be deemed to be obtained where the cost benefit analysis within the range of performance levels, calculated over the estimated economic lifecycle, is positive;

"design rating" is an energy performance rating based on:

(a) calculations, done at the design stage, of the energy used in a building for heating, cooling, ventilation, hot water and lighting;

(b) standard input data related to internal and external climates and building occupancy; and

(c) the design characteristics of the building as complete with permanently installed finishes, fixtures, fittings and mechanical and electrical installations to render that building habitable and good for its intended use under standardised conditions of weather and building occupancy;

"development permission application" means an application for a development permit issued by the Planning Authority;

"Directive (EU) 2023/1791" means Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 September 2023 on energy efficiency and amending Regulation (EU) 2023/955 (recast);

"district heating" or "district cooling" means the distribution of thermal energy in the form of steam, hot water or chilled liquids or other fluids, from a central source of production through a network to multiple buildings or sites, for the use of space or process heating or cooling;

"dwelling" means a building or building unit used or intended to be used for domestic purposes and usually containing eating, living, sleeping and sanitary facilities;

"effective rated output" means the maximum calorific output, expressed in kW, specified and guaranteed by the manufacturer as being deliverable during continuous operation while complying with the useful efficiency indicated by the manufacturer;

"Enemalta" means the Enemalta plc as established by the Enemalta (Transfer of Assets, Rights, Liabilities and Obligations)

Act;

"energy from renewable sources" means energy from renewable non-fossil sources, namely wind, solar, aerothermal, geothermal, hydrothermal and ocean energy, hydropower, biomass, landfill gas, sewage treatment plant gas and biogases;

"energy from renewable sources produced nearby" means energy from renewable sources, produced within a local or district-level perimeter of a particular building, which fulfils all of the following conditions:

(a) it may be distributed and used only within that local and district-level perimeter through a dedicated distribution network;

(b) it allows for the calculation of a specific primary energy factor valid only for the energy from renewable sources produced within that local or district-level perimeter; and

(c) it may be used on-site through a dedicated connection to the energy production source, where such dedicated connection requires specific equipment for the safe supply and metering of energy for self-use of the building;

"energy performance assessment (EPA)" means an assessment of the energy performance of a building carried out by an EPB assessor for the purpose of assigning an EPC;

"energy performance certificate (EPC)" means a certificate issued by an EPB assessor recognised by the Building and Construction Authority or by a person designated by it and authorised to act on its behalf. The methodology used by the EPB assessor shall conform with the methodology adopted in accordance with regulation 4;

"energy performance of a building (EPB)" means the calculated or measured amount of energy, needed to meet the energy demand associated with a typical use of the building, which includes, inter alia, energy used for heating, cooling, ventilation, hot water and lighting;

"entrusted party" means a legal entity with delegated power from Government or another public body to develop, manage or operate a financing scheme on behalf of Government or any other public body;

"EPB assessor" means a person who is duly registered with the Building and Construction Authority after it has taken into consideration that such person is in possession of:

(a) a warrant to practice the profession of architect and, or civil/structural engineer, or the warrant to practice the profession of mechanical or electrical engineer, and who has also successfully undertaken a period of training on the assessment of the energy performance of buildings built in Malta, and such training is approved by the Building and Construction Authority; or

(b) in the case of an EU citizen, a registration certificate as an EPB assessor in any other Member State, and a warrant to practice the profession of architect and, or civil/ structural engineer, or the warrant to practice the profession of mechanical or electrical engineer:

Provided that in the case of a person who comes to Malta to provide such services for the first time, the service provider or EPB assessor shall, in terms of regulation 9(1) of the Recognition of Professional Qualifications Regulations, inform the Building and Construction Authority in a written declaration to be made at least two weeks in advance. Such declaration shall be renewed each year if the service provider intends to provide temporary or occasional services during that year:

Provided also that for the first provision of services whether on a temporary or permanent basis, or if there is a material change in the situation substantiated by the documents, the Building and Construction Authority may, in terms of regulation 9(2) of the

Recognition of Professional Qualifications Regulations, require that the declaration and the registered certificate be accompanied by the following documents:

(a) proof of the nationality of the service provider;

(b) an attestation certifying that the holder is legally established in a Member State for the purpose of pursuing the activities concerned and that he is not prohibited, even temporarily, from practising the relevant profession and that of an EPB assessor;

(c) evidence of professional qualifications;

"EPC data file" means an electronic file which contains a report on the outcome of an EPA, which is completed by an EPB assessor and provided to the Building and Construction Authority for the purpose of notifying it of the record to be made or updated on the EPC register in respect of a particular building, and it shall be deemed to include any calculations and related data or documents accompanying such report;

"EPC record" means the current and any previous EPC, any advisory report, any EPC data file and any related data or documents, as the case may be, pertaining to a building;

"EPC register" means a database of EPC records and related data or documents established, operated, and maintained by the Building and Construction Authority;

"EPC system" means the registers, procedures and rules established, operated, and maintained by the Building and Construction Authority for the purpose of administering EPCs and related activities in accordance with these regulations;

"European standard" means a standard adopted by the European Committee for Standardisation, the European Committee for Electro-technical Standardisation or the European Telecommunications Standards Institute and made available for public use;

"existing building" means any building which:

(a) is already constructed prior to the date of entry into force of these regulations; or

(b) is in the course of construction or earmarked for construction and has a valid development permit in terms of these regulations prior to the date of entry into force of these regulations;

"final customer" means a natural or legal person who purchases energy based on a direct, individual contract with an energy supplier;

"heat generator" means the part of a heating system that generates useful heat using one or more of the following processes:

(a) the combustion of fuels in, for example, a boiler;

(b) the Joule effect, taking place in the heating elements of an electric resistance heating system;

(c) capturing heat from ambient air, ventilation exhaust air, or a water or ground heat source using a heat pump;

"heat pump" means a machine, a device or installation that transfers heat from natural surroundings such as air, water or ground to buildings or industrial applications by reversing the natural flow of heat, such that it flows from a lower to a higher temperature. In the case of reversible heat pumps, it may also move heat from the building to the natural surroundings;

"heating system" means a combination of the components required to provide a form of indoor air treatment, by which the temperature is increased;

"independent air-conditioning systems inspector" means a registered air-conditioning systems inspector who is not the owner or tenant of the air-conditioning system being inspected, or an employee of the owner, or of any contractor responsible for the installation or maintenance of an air-conditioning system for which an inspection is made;

"independent energy performance assessor" means a registered assessor of energy performance of building, who is not the owner or tenant of the building being assessed, or an employee of the owner, or of any contractor responsible for the construction, finishing and, or installation of mechanical or electrical services of a building for which an EPC is being requested or inspections of boilers, or lighting, space heating or space cooling systems are made;

"independent heating systems inspector" means a registered heating systems inspector who is not the owner or tenant of the heating system being inspected, or an employee of the owner, or of any contractor responsible for the installation or maintenance of a heating system for which an inspection is made;

"installation" means a system providing artificial lighting, water heating, space heating or space cooling or space ventilation in any combination;

"major renovation or alteration" means a renovation or alteration:

(a) which affects a building by 25% or more of its volume before such an intervention; or

(b) where renovation of 25% or more of windows or roofs or external walls is made; or

(c) where renovation of 25% or more of any energy consuming installations for artificial lighting, or heating or cooling of air or water or space ventilation is made; or

(d) where a change-of-use development permission application and, or notification concerning buildings, is submitted to the Planning Authority;

"Member State" means a state which is a member of the European Union;

"micro isolated system" means any system with consumption less than 500 GWh where there is no connection with other systems;

"the Minister" means the Minister responsible for the building industry and policy;

"nearly zero-energy building" means a building that has a very high energy performance, as determined in accordance with Schedule I. The nearly zero or very low amount of energy required shall be covered to a very significant extent by energy from renewable sources, including energy from renewable sources produced on-site or nearby;

"new building" means any building which does not fall under any of the categories of existing building;

"non-residential building or premises" means any building or premises, or any part of a building or premises, which is not used or is unsuitable for use as a residential building or habitation, and includes industrial buildings, places of assembly, offices, schools and shops;

"on-site" means within or on a particular building, or on the land on which that building is located;

"owner" means:

(a) a person who has the exclusive and full ownership of the building and who is acting in his own name, or as an agent for or on behalf of another person, who is entitled or shall be so entitled to receive the rent of the building;

(b) where the building is subject to usufruct, the bare owner or the usufructuary;

(c) an emphyteuta;

(d) any one of the spouses, where the building to which the EPC relates forms part of the community of acquests; "owner of an air-conditioning system" means a person acting in his own name, or as an agent for or on behalf of another person, who has the exclusive and full ownership of the air-conditioning system;

"owner of a heating system" means a person acting in his own name, or as an agent for or on behalf of another person, who has the exclusive and full ownership of the heating system;

"person" means any natural or legal person;

"Planning Authority" means the authority established under article 5 of the Development Planning Act;

"primary energy" means energy from renewable and non-renewable sources and which has not undergone any conversion or transformation process;

"prospective buyer or tenant" means a person who:

(a) is in the process of entering a sale agreement with another person or with the agent of such other person for the purpose of purchasing a building; or

(b) enters a promise of sale agreement with another person or the agent of such other person for the purpose of purchasing a building; or

(c) enters a contract of letting and hiring, whether verbally or written, to rent a building;

"public bodies" means national, regional or local authorities and entities directly financed and administered by such authorities which do not have an industrial or commercial character;

"register of EPB assessors" means a database containing a list of EPB assessors registered with the Building and Construction Authority and any other related data established, operated, maintained and owned by the Building and Construction Authority;

"registered air-conditioning systems inspector" means a person who is duly registered with the Building and Construction Authority as an air-conditioning systems inspector;

"registered heating systems inspector" means a person who is duly registered with the Building and Construction Authority as a heating systems inspector;

"technical building system" means technical equipment for space heating, space cooling, ventilation, domestic hot water, built-in lighting, building automation and control, on-site electricity generation, or a combination thereof, including those systems using energy from renewable sources, of a building or building unit;

"Technical Document F" means the minimum energy performance requirements and technical building systems in force at the time in accordance with sub-regulation (1) of regulation 5, as may from time to time be amended, as the Building and Construction Authority shall determine, which shall also be made available on the Authority’s website. Wherever minimum energy performance requirements are mentioned the said requirements shall refer to Technical Document F.

"unincorporated body" means a body or business which is privately owned, often owned by one person having unlimited liability owing to the non-registration of the business as a company and which on the contrary of corporate bodies lacks legal personality;

"useful floor area" means the area of the building relevant to the official calculation methodology relevant to that building category;

"waste heat and cold" means unavoidable heat or cold generated as a by-product in industrial or power generation installations, or in the tertiary sector, which would be dissipated unused into air or water without access to a district heating or cooling system, where a cogeneration process has been used or will be used or where cogeneration is not feasible.