Iberdrola and the CSCAE join forces to promote the comprehensive energy rehabilitation of homes

Iberdrola and the Consejo Superior de los Colegios de Arquitectos de España (CSCAE) have reached a collaboration agreement to promote the wave of housing rehabilitation and neighbourhood regeneration contemplated within the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan with European Next Generation funds.

Among other commitments, thanks to the agreement signed, professional advice will be offered to architects and architects' associations, communities of owners and citizens interested in the aid, whether they are considering the comprehensive rehabilitation of their buildings or for urban regeneration interventions and/or actions that include the decarbonisation of the heating/ACS system, through the installation of aerothermal equipment and high-efficiency heat pumps.

To this end, the agreement stipulates that the technical projects that so require will be supported by the Rehabilitation Support Offices of the Architects' Associations that adhere to the agreement.

The OAR Network is an initiative of the CSCAE, with the Architects' Associations, created in December 2020 to facilitate the management of energy efficiency grants within the framework of the Next Generation EU funds. With implementation throughout the country, the Rehabilitation Support Offices function as points of reference for Public Administrations, registered architects, homeowners' associations and citizens in general, to provide information, advice and connection with specialised professionals.

The objective is that the management and execution of the rehabilitation actions that are developed with charge to these funds have the necessary rigour to guarantee the achievement of the aid, its optimisation and, most importantly, a lasting well-being for the users.

For his part, Iberdrola Spain's Commercial Director, Alfonso Calderón, reiterated that "agreements like this are necessary to help the planet, and society in general, to be more sustainable. The energy refurbishment of buildings has a positive short and medium-term impact on the comfort of the home and also achieves significant energy and financial savings. Iberdrola is committed to continue taking steps to ally itself with the best partners, providing the best tools and the best technical solvency".

During the signing of the agreement, the president of the CSCAE, Marta Vall-llossera, thanked Iberdrola for its support: "Climate change is probably the greatest global challenge we face as a society and, in addition, there is also the need to reduce current energy dependencies. This agreement reflects the firm commitment to ensure that the wave of housing and building refurbishment and the decarbonisation of the residential stock in our country reaches a successful conclusion with long-term guarantees for citizens, who must be the main beneficiaries of this transformation".

In addition, with the aim of promoting refurbishment, Iberdrola undertakes to promote continuous training and access to courses on refurbishment and energy efficiency for architects who are members of the Official Associations that sign up to the agreement.
In order to provide professional coverage for the entire duration of the "wave of renovation" of homes and buildings promoted by the Next Generation funds, the term of the agreement signed between the CSCAE and Iberdrola will run until 31 December 2025, with the possibility of renewing the agreement for additional periods of one year until 31 December 2027, when it will expire definitively.

Joining the CSCAE Observatory 2030

Both the CSCAE and Iberdrola believe in the need and are interested in collaborating to carry out activities to encourage and support strategic projects of common interest and impact on the architecture and building sector in its broadest sense, with a special focus on the contribution of this sector to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda, in general, and in particular, to climate objectives and decarbonisation of the economy, where the building sector and buildings have a relevant role. For this reason, the agreement signed includes the joint commitment to promote the social valuation of the building sector and, in line with the Architecture Quality Act, the public recognition of architecture as a discipline of social interest.

In addition, the company will now join the activities developed by the CSCAE 2030 Observatory due to its importance for the achievement of the SDGs and its contribution to the design of solutions aligned with climate policies and the decarbonisation of the economy. Specifically, it will promote and drive strategic projects and propose programmes and activities that contribute to achieving these goals within the CSCAE 2030 Observatory.