Issuer: Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications

Type: regulation
In force from: 09.01.2013
In force until: In force
Translation published: 20.10.2014

Methodology for calculating the

energy performance of buildings1

Passed 08.10.2012 No. 63

This regulation is made in accordance with subsection 73of section 3 of the Building Act.

Chapter 1

GENERAL PROVISIONS

§ 1. Scope of application of theRegulation

This regulation establishes the methods forcalculating the energy performance of buildings to prove their
compliance withthe minimum requirements for energy performance.

§ 2. Definitions

(1) Theterms in this regulation are defined as follows:

1) major renovation– renovation is deemed to be major if the costs of modification of thebuilding’s envelope
elements and of modification or replacement of thebuilding’s loadbearing or stiffening elements, or of
modification of thebuilding envelope and the building’s technical systems or parts thereof,or the complete
replacement of a technical system, exceed one quarter of theaverage building cost of a construction work that is
equivalent to theconstruction work which is being renovated;

2) technical systems– the heating system and the system of hothousehold water including the corresponding
heat sources, the ventilation system,the cooling system, lighting and the systems which generate heat or
electricitylocally and are included in the energy calculation in accordance with thisregulation;

3)indoor climate control– the use of energy for the purpose of ensuring the qualityof indoor air, including
maintaining, increasing or reducing indoortemperature, in compliance with the ventilation and room
temperaturerequirements established in this regulation, and for the purpose of lightingunder the building’s
standard use;

4) heated area –net area of roomswith indoor climate control;

5) energy network –a system for thetransmission of energy and for the distribution of energy to consumers (such
asthe power network, district heating and district cooling network, natural gasnetwork);

6) heat gain –solar radiation whichenters the building, as well as internal heat gains from occupants,
lighting,equipment and technical systems;

7)building leakage rate–the parameter which characterises the airtightness of the building envelope and which is
determined by means of an air leakagetest at a pressure difference of 50 Pa. Thebuilding’s average leakage rate
[m3/(h m2)] isexpressed per square metre of the buildingenvelope. The area of the envelope iscalculated on the
basis of the internal dimensions of the building.

8) ESEER –the average coolingseason energy efficiency ratio of cooling and refrigeration equipment issued
bytheir manufacturer, calculated according to the European standards and on thebasis of the base usage profile
and use conditions of an average Europeancooling device, excluding the electricity use of the fans and pumps of
thecondenser;

9) SEER –the average cooling seasonenergy efficiency ratio which is stated in the energy performance
certificateof air conditioners and air-to-air heat pumps whose capacity is up to 12 kW andwhich is calculated as
the ratio of the energy need for cooling during thecooling season to electricity use under standard conditions;

Methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings Page 1 / 8

10) SCOP– the annual average seasonal coefficient ofperformance which is stated inthe energy performance
certificate of air conditionersand air-to-air heat pumps whose capacity is up to 12 kW and which is calculatedas
the ratio of energy need of heating to electricity use under standardconditions.

(2) The terms used in this regulation in relation toenergy performance and energycalculationare defined as
follows:

1) test reference year for energycalculations –the body of outdoor weather data required forindoor climate and
energy calculations and compiled following the Estonianstandard EVS-EN ISO 15927–4:2005 on the basis of
weather data collectedin the entire territory of Estonia during the period 1970–2000;

2)exported energy –the heat or electricity which is generatedwithin the building or on the building site and
which is not used in thebuilding but is fed into energy networks;

3)local renewable energy –the heat or electricity generated from solar, wind, water and geothermal energy
sources within the building or on the building site. In thecase of heat pumps, the renewable energy harvested
from the energy source istaken into account in the energy calculation according to the heat pump’scoefficient of
performance;

4)deliveredenergy –the electricity obtained from powernetworks or the heat obtained from district heating
networks in kilowatt-hoursper annum (kWh/y) or the energy content (in kilowatt-hours) of fuel which isobtained
from fuel suppliers and which is used to cover the building’sannual aggregate energy use in so far as this is not
covered by local renewableenergy. Any fuel obtained from the building site is deemed to constitutedelivered
energy;

5)total energy use (kWh/y) of the building –use of heat andelectricity by the building’s technical systems
required for indoorclimate control, the heating of household water and the operation of electricalequipment,
excluding local renewable energy (excepting heat pumps). Thebuilding’s total energy use includes all
energy losses of the technical systems,including heat sources and the distribution systems of local energy
generation,and the conversion of energy (e.g., coefficient of performance of a heat pump, energyefficiency ratio
of a cooling plant, cogeneration, fuel cell);

6) primaryenergy –the amount of primary energy fromrenewable and non-renewable sources which is required
for the generation of onekilowatt-hour of delivered energy, including any losses involved in harnessingan energy
source and in the generation, transmission and distribution ofenergy;

7)energycarrier conversion factors –factors which take intoaccount the use of primary energy required for the
generation of deliveredenergy and the environmental impact involved;

8)specificuse –the annual energy use in kilowatt-hours per squaremetre of heated area of a building [kWh/
(m2y)];

9)totalweighted specific use of exported energy –the sum of the products,calculated separately for each energy
carrier, of the energy fed into thecorresponding energy network and the energy carrier conversion factor;

10)totalweighted specific use of delivered energ –the sum of the products,calculated separately for each energy
carrier, of the delivered energy and theenergy carrier conversion factor;

11)standarduse of a building –the normal use of a building inrelation to the verification of compliance with the
minimum requirements forenergy performance. The determination of the standard use takes into accountthe
building’s purpose of use, its outdoor and indoor climate, the timeduring which the building and its technical
systems are used, and heat gains;

12) energy performance indicator[kWh/(m2y)]– calculatedtotal weighted specific use of delivered energy
consumed in thecourse of standard use of the building, from which the weighted specific useof exported energy
is subtracted;

13) appliances –appliances which belong to the enduser, such as home appliances, electronic devices, office
appliances, and whichdo not constitute a part of any technical system;

14) usage profile –the usage rate ofa room, calculated as the ratio of the heat gain from lighting, equipment and
occupantsto the maximum heat gain;

15) specific heat loss of the building envelope[W/K]–specific heat loss viathe building envelope in watts when
the difference between outdoor and indoortemperature is one degree Celsius;

16)total specific heat loss of the building envelope per square metre of heatedarea[W/(m2K)] – total specific
heat loss viathe building envelope per square metre of heated area of the building at adifference of one degree
Celsius between indoor and outdoor temperature. Thespecific heat loss is the sum of the heat losses that result
from conductionand infiltration through the building envelope;

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17)energyneed –the electrical and thermal energy(without taking into account system losses and conversions
from one energy typeto another) required for indoor climate control, the heating of householdwater, lighting,
and the operation of equipment. The energy need comprises: energy need for space heating, space cooling, the
heating of ventilation air,the cooling of ventilation air, ventilation, the heating of household water,lighting and
the operation of equipment;

18) energy need for space heating –the amount of thermal energy required for theheating of rooms to indoor
temperature, taking into account heat gains, heat losses that resultfrom conduction and infiltration through the
building envelope and the heating ofventilation supply air to indoor temperature;

19) energy need for space cooling –the amount of thermal energy required for thecooling of rooms to indoor
temperature, including both latent and sensible heat,taking into account heat gain, conductionand infiltration
through the building envelope and the temperature ofventilation supply air;

20) energy need for the heating of householdwater –the amount of thermal energy required for theheating of
household water;

21) energy need for the heating ofventilation air –the amount of thermal energy required for theheating of
ventilation air to supply temperature, from which recovered heat isdeducted; in the case of a ventilation system
without heat recovery, the amount of thermal energy required for the heating of ventilation air fromthe outdoor
temperature to indoor temperature.

22) energy need for the cooling ofventilation air –the amount of thermal energy required for thecooling of air,
including both latent and sensible heat;

23) energy use –use of electrical orthermal energy at a given point in the system. Energy use is calculated on
the basis of energy need,taking into account system losses and energy conversion losses. At theend-point of a
technical system of the building (usually the connection pointto the corresponding energy network), the energy
use of the utility systemequals the sum of delivered energy and local renewable energy;

24) system boundary of delivered and exportedenergy –the system boundary which is used in energycalculation
and which determines the relations between the energy flows to beincluded in the calculation (Figure 1).

Methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings Page 3 / 8

Figure1. System boundary of delivered and exported energy.

Chapter 2

INPUT PARAMETERS OF THE ENERGY PERFORMANCE CALCULATION

§ 3. Energy calculation

(1) In order to verify the compliance of a buildingwith the minimum requirements of energy performance,
the energy calculation isperformed with respect to the standard use of the building, using the inputparameters
which are set out in this regulation and which characterise the indoorand outdoor climate, the periods of

Page 4 / 8 Methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings

use and operation of the building and theutility systems, heat gains and the building’s air leakage rate. The
othernecessary input parameters are taken from the building design documentation.

(2) For the purposes of the energy calculation, it isnot necessary to perform a detailed division of the building
into zones. Smallresidential buildings and buildings with a single purpose of use may beregarded as a single
zone for the purposes of the energy calculation. Largebuildings are to be divided into as many zones as required
according to theirpurposes and periods of use.

(3) In this regulation, the buildings’ purposesof use are the purposes of use set out in the regulation entitled
MinimumRequirements for Energy Performanceenacted in accordance with subsection 72of section 3 of the
Building Act.

§ 4. Outdoor climate

Regardless of the building’slocation, the energycalculation and the verification ofcompliance with the
summertime indoor temperature requirement are performed onthe basis of the data of the Estonian test reference
year. The test referenceyear represents the typical outdoor climate of three decades (1970–2000) and therefore
is not suited to be used for the calculation ofthe heating power need. Where the test reference year is used for
calculatingthe cooling load, it should be borne in mind that the results are notapplicable to the cooling load in
the case of a warmer than average summer.

§ 5. Indoor climate

(1) The energy calculation uses the indoor temperatureset-points and ventilation air flow rates set out in the
regulation entitled MinimumRequirements for Energy Performanceenacted in accordance with subsection 72of
section 3 of the Building Act.

(2) In the case of a simplified calculation whichtreats indoor temperature as a constant, the indoor temperature
set-points areused as the indoor temperature value (e.g., in residential buildings 21 °C forheating and 27 °C
for cooling). In the case of a dynamic calculation, therelevant values are used as the heating and cooling set-
points of a thermostat.Where the building lacks a cooling system, the difference between thesummertime indoor
temperatures and the cooling set-point must be calculated.

(3)Outside of occupied hours, the ventilation air flow rate of a non-residentialbuilding is deemed to be 0.15 l/
(sm2) in the out of operation mode ofthe ventilation system.

(4) In the case of a variable airvolume ventilation system in which the air flow rate varies and whose
controlfunction operates in accordance with the quality of air (the carbon dioxide (CO2)content or a
combination of CO2content and, for example,temperature or humidity values), the air flow rates set out in the
regulationentitled Minimum Requirements for Energy Performanceenacted inaccordance with subsection 72of
section 3 of the Building Act areused as the maximum air flow rates of the relevant rooms. Where a system with
avariable air flow rate is used for the purpose of cooling, the maximum air flowrate is determined according to
the cooling need. The minimum air flow rate andthe ventilation control function must, in general, be selected
such as to avoidexceeding the 1000 ppm maximum volume fraction of CO2while thecorresponding value in
outdoor air is 400 ppm.

Chapter 3

STANDARD USE OF THE BUILDING

§ 6.Occupied hoursand heat gain

(1) The standard use of buildings and thecorresponding heat gain from appliances and lighting and from
occupants areprovided in Table 1 which shows the building’s number of occupied hoursper 24-hour day, the
number of days of use per week and the maximum heat gain fromlighting and appliances and the maximum heat
gain from occupants during thebuilding’s occupied hours. The heat gain figures do not include heat gainfrom
the building’s technical systems, which is calculated as part ofthe calculations made for the technical systems
according to the requirementsset out in Chapter 5 of this regulation.

Table 1. Standard use of buildings and thecorresponding maximum values of heat gain per square metre of
heated area

Building’s Occupied hours Usage rate Lightinga Appliances Occupantsb Occupants

purpose of Hours h/24h d/7d
use W/m2 m2/person
W/m2 W/m2

Methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings Page 5 / 8

Small 00:00-00:00 24 7 0.6 8c 2.4d 2 42.5
residential
building
Multi- 00:00-00:00 24 7 0.6 8c 3d 3 28.3
apartment
building
Office 07:00-18:00 11 5 0.55 12 12 5 17.0
building,
library or
research
building
Commerce 07:00-21:00 14 7 0.55 20 1 5 17.0
building or
terminal
Accommodation00:00-00:00 24 7 0.5 8 1 4 21.3
building
Food 12:00-22:00 10 7 0.4 20 4 14 6.1
service
building
or service
building
Public 08:00-22:00 14 7 0.5 14 0 5 17.0
building
Educational 08:00-16:00 8 5 0.6f 15 8 14 5.4
buildinge
Pre-school 07:00-19:00 12 5 0.4 15 4 20 3.8
institution
for children
Healthcare 00:00-00:00 24 7 0.6 9 4 8 10.6
building
a
the figures shown assume the use, in non-residentialbuildings, of fluorescent lights or other lighting equipment
of similareffectiveness. The heat releases shown include both the nominal power of thefluorescent light and the
nominal power of the starter which accounts forapproximately 25% of the nominal power.
b
the internal heat gain from occupants only includesthe sensible heat. In order to include latent heat, the relevant
values must bedivided by the factor 0.6.
c
the usage rate of lighting in residential buildingsis 0.1.
d
to obtain the electricity use of the appliances inresidential buildings, the heat release value must be divided by
the factor0.7.
e
excluding pre-school institutions for children.
f
during the summer break from 15 June to 15 August,the usage intensity is 0.1 and the ventilation operates in the
non-use-hoursmode.

(2) Usage rate means the average use intensity oflighting and appliances and the average presence of occupants
during thebuilding’s occupied hours. The maximum heat release value (usage rate =1) is used in the calculations
of summertime indoor temperatures and cooling loads,except in the case of buildings referred to under
subsections 8 and 9. For thepurposes of the energy calculation, the maximum heat release value ismultiplied by
the usage rate value. The annual heat release Q [kWh/(m2y)]of lighting and appliances and the internal heat gain
from occupants iscalculated using the following formula:

where kis the rate of usage;

Pis heat release W/m2;

τdis the building’s number of occupied hours per24-hour day;

τwis the building’s number of days ofoccupancy per week.

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(3) For the purposes of the energy calculation, the useof electricity by lighting and appliances equals the heat
released by thelighting and appliances. In residential buildings, the use of electricity byappliances is obtained by
dividing the heat release of appliances with thefactor 0.7.

(4) Lighting which is characterised by wattage lowerthan that given in Table 1 may be used if it provides
the same level ofilluminance and a separate calculation of illuminance in standard rooms isprovided as part
of the input parameters of the energy calculation. The generalindex of illuminance in rooms, uniformity of
illuminance, glare and colourrendition and other lighting-related guidelines are provided in the standardEVS-EN
12464-1.

(5) Where the building’s lighting is controlledon a demand basis, the number of use hours of the lighting is
calculated usingthe occupied hours shown in Table 1. The model used for the calculation of the averagewattage
of lighting must be room-based and the lighting of rooms must ensurethe level of illuminance which
corresponds to the relevant purpose of use.Where the calculation of the average wattage of lighting is performed
inrespect of different room types, the average wattage of lighting in heatedareas is the weighted average of the
areas of the rooms which represent thosetypes.

(6) In calculating the ventilation need,ventilation is held to start one hour before the building’s start hour ofuse
and to switch to the non-use-hours mode one hour after the end hour of useof the building (except for buildings
which are used on a 24 hour basis).

(7) The dynamic energy calculations ofresidential buildings, office buildings, libraries, research
buildings,educational buildings (excluding pre-school institutions for children and othereducational buildings),
and pre-school institutions for children use thedetailed usage profiles of buildings set out in Table 2 below.

Table 2. Detailed usagerate values for the energy calculation

Time Residential Residential Residential Office Educational Pre-school

building, building, building building,library, building institution
lighting lightning occupants research for children
building
00:00-01:00 0 0.5 1 0 0 0
01:00-02:00 0 0.5 1 0 0 0
02:00-03:00 0 0.5 1 0 0 0
03:00-04:00 0 0.5 1 0 0 0
04:00-05:00 0 0.5 1 0 0 0
05:00-06:00 0 0.5 1 0 0 0
06:00-07:00 0.15 0.5 0.5 0 0 0
07:00-08:00 0.15 0.7 0.5 0.2 0 0.4
08:00-09:00 0.15 0.7 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.8
09:00-10:00 0.15 0.5 0.1 0.6 0.6 0.8
10:00-11:00 0.05 0.5 0.1 0.7 0.6 0.3
11:00-12:00 0.05 0.6 0.1 0.7 0.4 0.3
12:00-13:00 0.05 0.6 0.1 0.4 0.3 0.8
13:00-14:00 0.05 0.6 0.2 0.6 0.6 0.1
14:00-15:00 0.05 0.6 0.2 0.7 0.6 0.1
15:00-16:00 0.05 0.5 0.2 0.7 0.3 0.4
16:00-17:00 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.6 0 0.3
17:00-18:00 0.2 0.7 0.5 0.2 0 0.3
18:00-19:00 0.2 0.7 0.5 0 0 0.3
19:00-20:00 0.2 0.8 0.8 0 0 0
20:00-21:00 0.2 0.8 0.8 0 0 0
21:00-22:00 0.2 0.8 0.8 0 0 0
22:00-23:00 0.15 0.6 1 0 0 0
23:00-00:00 0.15 0.6 1 0 0 0

(8)The verification of compliance of residential buildingsand open office rooms with the summertime indoor
temperature requirement isperformed using the detailed energy calculation usage profilesof buildings as set out
in Table 2.

Methodology for calculating the energy performance of buildings Page 7 / 8

(9) The verificationof compliance of single room offices, conference rooms, classrooms and therooms of pre-
school institutions with the summertime indoor temperaturerequirement and the dynamic calculation of the
cooling load of such premises areperformed using the detailed usage profiles of rooms as set out in Table 3.
Forclassrooms and conference rooms, the heat gain values provided in Table 4 areused. For other rooms, the
heat gain values provided in Table 1 are used.

Table 3. Usage rate values for the verification ofcompliance with summertime indoor temperature requirement

Time Single- Conference room Classroom Playing room Sleeping room

room office in a pre-school in a pre-school
institution institution
forchildren forchildren
00:00-01:00 0 0 0 0 0
01:00-02:00 0 0 0 0 0
02:00-03:00 0 0 0 0 0
03:00-04:00 0 0 0 0 0
04:00-05:00 0 0 0 0 0
05:00-06:00 0 0 0 0 0
06:00-07:00 0 0 0 0 0
07:00-08:00 0 0 0 0.5 0.2
08:00-09:00 1 1 0.8 1 0.2
09:00-10:00 1 1 0.8 1 0.2
10:00-11:00 1 1 0.8 0.4 0.2
11:00-12:00 1 1 0.8 0.4 0.2
12:00-13:00 0 0 0.5 1 0.2
13:00-14:00 1 1 0.8 0.2 1
14:00-15:00 1 1 0.8 0.2 1
15:00-16:00 1 1 0.8 0.5 0.5
16:00-17:00 1 1 0 0.4 0.2
17:00-18:00 0 0 0 0.4 0.2
18:00-19:00 0 0 0 0.5 0.2
19:00-20:00 0 0 0 0 0
20:00-21:00 0 0 0 0 0
21:00-22:00 0 0 0 0 0
22:00-23:00 0 0 0 0 0
23:00-00:00 0 0 0 0 0

Table 4. Internal heatgain values for the verification of compliance with summertime indoortemperature
requirement

Purpose of use ofthe room Lighting

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