Energy performance assessment of a post-retrofit office building using measurement and verification protocol: A case study from KSA

Buildings account for over one third of the global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. While new buildings are being sought to be more efficient, retrofitting of existing building is also critical to improve the energy and environmental sustainability of the building sector. Measurement and Verification (M&V) based energy retrofitting studies are becoming important in presenting the case for energy retrofit solutions. This work presents an energy performance assessment of a retrofitted office building using the International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) option B to conduct the M&V. The building, an office block with a built-up area of 7,500 m2, is in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. The work carries out a detailed energy audit of the building to investigate the energy saving opportunities. Of the identified options, five energy efficiency measures (EEMs) are implemented. The energy performance of the building is also helped by the installation of a rooftop Photovoltaic (PV) system. The results indicate that retrofit measures helped reduce the Energy Use Index (EUI) from 458.9 kWh/m2/year to 361.4 kWh/m2/year. The economic analysis finds the compound payback period for the investments to be six years.(c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Automated summary

Buildings play a significant role in global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Retrofitting existing buildings is crucial for improving the energy efficiency and sustainability in the building sector. This study assesses the energy performance of a retrofitted office building using the International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP). A detailed energy audit was conducted, and five energy efficiency measures were implemented. The results show a reduction in energy use and a six-year payback period for the investments.