Path to Net Zero: Understanding the Building Energy Efficiency in Different Climates across Various Building Types

Abstract

This study analyses the determinants of building energy efficiency in different climate zones and user types. The energy consumption of buildings in different climate zones can be affected by well-known determinants in different ways. So do the buildings with different user types. The primary aim of this study is to investigate how building energy efficiency is determined in five major climate zones and four main property types. This study uses the global building data (Points Achieved dataset) from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system 2010 to conduct three cross-sectional tests with logit regression models. The results confirm that the determinants of building energy efficiency are the location of the building, adoption of Building Energy Codes (BECs), climate zones, building types, regional economic development level (namely Gross National Income—GNI, Purchasing Power Parity—PPP) and population density. However, the impact of the determinants varies considerably in different climate zones or for different building types. This is the first empirical study exploring building energy efficiency and how it is determined in different climate conditions and user types. The findings are helpful for the stakeholders, such as policymakers, developers, and local authorities, when they hope to implement measures to improve building energy efficiency and the policy/regulation to boost it. Each building requires specific measures that suit its different climate zones or building types to enhance energy efficiency.