Becoming a feasibility study author for buildings to be constructed

Any natural person who, less than three years prior to the submission of the application for approval, has not been the subject of a decision withdrawing their approval, and who meets one of the following conditions:

• holds a degree in architectural engineering, civil engineering, industrial engineering or bioengineering

OR

• demonstrate appropriate qualifications or proven experience in at least three of the technologies referred to in Article 15(1) or Article 22(1) of the Order (i.e. the five mandatory techniques presented above, as well as cogeneration or any other decentralised energy supply system based on renewable energy sources).

A legal person may also be approved if, among its staff or collaborators, it has at least one natural person who holds the approval.

Applications for approval must be submitted to the administration using the form (available below), duly completed and signed:

• by post to the address specified on the form (original version of the handwritten signed form);
• by email to the address specified on the form (with an attachment in PDF format containing a copy of the signed handwritten form or the digitally signed form); or
• via Mon Espace.

Objective of the feasibility study

Since 1 May 2015, and in accordance with the Order of the Walloon Parliament of 28 November 2013 on the energy performance of buildings, a technical, environmental and economic feasibility study must be attached to the application for planning permit for any new construction, regardless of its floor area.

This feasibility study is intended to consider alternative energy production systems (mainly renewable energy systems but also cogeneration) in order to compare them with a conventional system (known as the ‘reference’ system). This procedure was previously only intended for new buildings with more than 1,000 m² of useful floor area, but it has now been generalised. Only buildings that are exempt from the BEP requirement are exempt from it.

The aim is to raise awareness among project owners of the economic, environmental and energy potential of alternative systems. In other words, of the savings that they can achieve both from a financial point of view and in terms of their CO2 emissions or energy consumption.

Content of the feasibility study

Specifically, in accordance with Article 22 of the Order of the Walloon Government of 15 May 2014, the technical, environmental and economic feasibility study considers at least the possibility of using the following technologies:

1. solar photovoltaic systems;
2. solar thermal systems;
3. heat pumps;
4. heat generators using biomass;
5. district heating networks.

Other techniques, such as cogeneration, may of course be considered, but they are not mandatory.

In accordance with the same Article 22 and with Article 15 of the Order of 28 November 2013, the feasibility study must include at least the following elements:

1. a presentation of the building studied, including its total useful floor area, and its energy needs;
2. a summary table of the working assumptions relating to the technologies envisaged;
3. an analysis of the technologies envisaged, in particular their description, their technical integration into the building, their relevance, an assessment of the usage constraints (in particular in terms of maintenance, availability and the type of fuel envisaged) and, for the technology or technologies for which integration is possible and selected, their energy balance (including the number of kWh saved compared to the reference solution), economic balance (in particular cost and payback time) and environmental balance (number of kg of CO2 saved compared to the reference);
4. the choice of the technology or technologies selected and their justification;
5. the BEP file number;
6. the identity and contact details of the declarant, the architect and the BEP manager;
7. the accreditation references of the author of the feasibility study;
8. the date;
9. the signature of the declarant and the author of the feasibility study.

The feasibility study must be attached to the permit application file together with the initial BEP declaration.

There is no mandatory or regulatory software for carrying out the feasibility study. However, the Walloon Region provides several tools to assist the author in this task.

Within 10 days of receipt of the form, the administration will send the applicant an acknowledgement of receipt, stating the date on which the application was received, the deadline within which the decision must be taken, and the available remedies and competent bodies.

The approval decision must be made within 40 days of the date on which the acknowledgement of receipt is sent.

If the application for approval is incomplete, the administration will inform the applicant as soon as possible. This notification will identify any missing documents. The time limit for approval starts to run from the receipt of all the missing documents.

• November 28, 2013 - Decree on the Energy Performance of Buildings
• May 15, 2014 - Walloon Government Order implementing the Decree of November 28, 2013, on the energy performance of buildings

What can you do if, at the end of the procedure, you are not satisfied with the decision made?

Send the Inspector General the reasons for your dissatisfaction, at the following address:

Service public de Wallonie
Département de l'Énergie et du Bâtiment durable
Monsieur l’Inspecteur général
Rue des Brigades d’Irlande, 1
5100 Jambes

If you are still dissatisfied after having taken these preliminary steps, you can lodge a complaint with the Ombudsman of Wallonia and the French Community.