The imperative to decarbonize the building sector
France has committed to an ambitious decarbonization strategy, in line with the recommendations of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Tertiary buildings, which include office, retail, educational and administrative buildings, are at the heart of this strategy. These buildings represent a significant part of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in France (16% of gross emissions).
The National Low Carbon Strategy (SNBC), launched by the State in 2015, imposes clear objectives for reducing GHG emissions by 2050. It plans for the building sector (residential and tertiary combined) to reduce by 95% GHG emissions over this horizon.
To achieve this, it is essential to reduce the consumption of fossil energy and encourage the use of renewable energies. Particularly for heating buildings by replacing oil or gas boilers with heat pumps.
The lever of photovoltaic solar
Reminder of the APER law
Law No. 2025-391 of April 30, 2025 DDADUE ( various provisions of adaptation to European Union law) in economic, financial, environmental, energy, transport, health and circulation of persons, was published in the Official Journal of May 2, 2025.
It makes several modifications to the regimes of the solarization and greening obligations of buildings and parking lots from the APER law.
Article L. 171-4 of the Construction and Housing Code
As a reminder, this article established for new buildings an obligation of solarization or greening of the roofs and parking shades of the associated parking lots.
From now on, in the DDADUE law, the legislator specifies:
- The subjugation threshold: "non -covered parking parking parks of more than 500m2".
- The area concerned by the obligation (50%)
- The existing associated parking lots will not be affected by the solarization/vegetation obligation when the public service, service or commercial lease concession contracts are concluded or renewed. These parks will only be affected in the event of a heavy renovation.
- It will not be possible to meet the obligation to solarization or vegetation of the roofs of the buildings by the cover of the parking parks
Article L. 111-19-1 of the town planning code
This article in the law of 2023 established the solarization obligation of existing external parking lots of more than 1500m2. It is changed as follows:
- Responsibility for compliance with obligations now weighs on the owner of the park, and no longer the manager, except when the park is managed in concession or in delegation of public service or under an authorization to occupy the public domain, in which case the obligations apply to the concessionaire, the delegate or the holder of the authorization.
- For parks whose contract is concluded or renewed before July 1, 2026, the obligations come into force on this date.
- For parks whose contract is concluded or renewed after July 1, 2026, the obligations came into force on July 1, 2028.
- For parks of more than 10,000m2, the obligations come into force on January 1, 2028 and no longer in 2026 as initially planned (the contract of commitment with deposit must be signed before December 31, 2025 and the order form concluded before June 30, 2026)
- The circulation tracks and paths borrowed specifically by the trucks of more than 7.5 tonnes are deducted from the area of the parking parks for the calculation of the area to be equipped with shades. This provision comes from legislative debates.