As an essential tool of the German climate protection and energy policy, the Energy Saving Regulation ("EnEV") sets the structural and heating-technical requirements for an efficient operational energy demand of construction projects. Among other things, also the basic provisions relating to the energy performance certificate, energetically evaluated building by efficiency classes, be regulated in the "EnEV". The most recent version of the "EnEV" has been effective on 01^th May, 2014 and already brought important changes compared to its predecessor version of 2009. From the 01 January 2016 a tightening on the energetic requirements by new buildings came into effect again.

The energy saving regulation regulates, among other things, how much energy per square metre and year (kWh/(m²a)) may consume a newly erected building maximum for heating, ventilation, cooling and domestic hot water. From 2016 new residential buildings, office buildings and certain premises have to make do with 25% less primary energy to meet the requirements of the "EnEV". The energy for the heating and drinking water of the specific building must be provided so correspondingly more efficiently.

Now the primary energy demand could be made lower, for example, by measures such as a comprehensive insulation or a ventilation system with heat recovery and additional solar portion of the heating energy. However, those are elaborate and expensive projects. Alone by the use of a heat pump it is possible even without cost-intensive insulation or any additional equipment to meet the legal energy saving requirements of 2016.

The reason is in addition to the generally high degree of efficiency last but not least at the continuously increasing share of renewable electricity for the operation of the heat pump. This decreases the primary energy factor (PEF), indicating the non-renewable portion for the generation of the electricity. If it is still at 2.4, it will be specified from January 01, 2016 with 1.8. The PEF has a direct impact on the primary energy consumption in connection with the COP (SPF) of a heat pump. Thus, builders with heat pump technology have the opportunity, even beyond the requirements of the EnEV of 2016, to achieve sustainable and future-proof solutions for heating, hot water and cooling of their new buildings. Such buildings achieve best building efficiency classes with A or A+ with heat pumps. SmartHeat heat pumps offer solutions for the most diverse areas of application.

Detailed information on the subject of the Energy Saving Regulation you can get at the „Advisor "Energieeinsparverordnung (EnEV)" of the Federal Association Heat pump e. V. (BWP).