Please refer to our updated Global Sustainable Buildings Guide, which also provides information on green certification, minimum energy standards, CO2 targets and renewable energy as well as green leases.

Background to amendments and in-scope building typologies

As at 2024, only new buildings and existing buildings undertaking major energy use change or undergoing major retrofitting works are required to meet minimum energy performance requirements and meet prevailing sustainability standards.

Where no such energy use change or retrofitting works are carried out, there is currently no requirement for building owners to improve their building's energy performance.

The MND and the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) have proposed amendments to the Building Control Act 1989 to introduce the new MEI regime to uplift sustainability standards of existing buildings that may not have been designed with sustainability in mind, or may not be operated or maintained efficiently and as a result are highly energy-intensive but are yet not required to improve their energy efficiency, as noted by the senior minister of state on the second reading of BC Bill in Parliament.

When in force, section 22FA of the amended Building Control Act 1989 will adopt definitions of "Type 1 building" and "Type 2 building" to replace the definition of "prescribed building" so as to allow the minister to prescribe different types of buildings for the existing regime and the new MEI regime. Part 3B of the Building Control Act 1989 relating to environmental sustainability measures for existing buildings will be expanded to include each of the following building typology or sub-typology:

• Retail
• Hotel
• Office
• Hospital
• Polyclinic or private clinic
• Nursing home
• Education
• Civic community and cultural building
• Sports and recreation centre

The Commissioner of Building Control (CBC) will apply the MEI regime to energy-intensive buildings with a minimum gross floor area (GFA) of 5,000 square meters.

Energy performance requirements

The building's EUI thresholds will be set out in subsidiary legislation for each building sub-typology, in recognition of the fact that different sub-typologies will have different energy use profiles. EUI refers to the annual energy consumption of a building per unit of GFA (expressed in kilowatt hour per square meter per year).

An existing building will be considered energy-intensive if it exceeds a predetermined EUI threshold over a period of three years. For a start, the predetermined EUI threshold will be pegged at the 75th percentile of the EUI range. Buildings that are consistently in the top 25% of their building sub-typology in terms of energy consumption over three years will be subject to the MEI regime. The EUI threshold will remain fixed for a period of five years before the next review.

The following minimum energy performance standards currently apply to new and existing buildings undertaking major energy use change or undergoing major retrofitting works, with the MEI regime applying to existing buildings classified as energy-intensive from the third quarter of 2025:

Mandatory audit and scope of duties

For owners of prescribed existing buildings classified as energy-intensive and subject to the MEI regime, the CBC will issue an MEI audit notice and such building owners will be required to carry out the following:

• Appoint a qualified person (a professional mechanical engineer or energy auditor registered with the BCA) within 90 days from the issuance of the MEI audit notice to perform the following:
  • Conduct an energy audit of the building, which will involve a review of the major energy-consuming systems to identify possible measures to optimise energy use
  • Develop an EEIP that reduces the building's EUI by at least 10% from pre-audit levels – The MEI regime will be outcome-based, and neither the amended Building Control Act 1989 nor the CBC will stipulate the types of improvement measures that building owners need to undertake. Building owners have the autonomy to decide the measures to implement that are most appropriate for their buildings, as long as the required reduction is achieved. Depending on the building's existing condition and energy performance, these measures can range from simple and low-cost (such as replacing faulty parts/sensors, insulating hot water systems, installing monitoring instruments) to more extensive retrofitting works such as the replacement of the building's chiller systems, or other behavioural changes such as increasing the building's air conditioning temperature by 1 degree Celsius
• Submit the audit report of the energy audit carried out and an EEIP
• Implement EEIP measures within three years from the submission of the audit report
• Maintain the 10% reduction in EUI for a period of one year after implementation of the EEIP measures

The CBC may choose not to issue an MEI audit notice on any prescribed ground or if there are good reasons to withhold or cancel the MEI audit notice, such as in either of the following circumstances:

• The building is scheduled for redevelopment in the near future.
• The building is currently undergoing major retrofitting works or energy use change.

Failure to comply with requirements under the MEI regime will attract fines ranging from SGD 10,000 to SGD 150,000, depending on the severity of the offence, and may also be compounded in the case of a continuing offence. Building owners will be penalised for breaches in respect of the following:

• Submission of an EEIP
• Duty to carry out an EEIP
• Submission of maintenance report
• Non-compliance with the CBC's written direction issued to the building owner for the purpose of ensuring that the specified reduction or approved reduction in energy use intensity is achieved and maintained

Building owners who depart or deviate from the EEIP will also be penalised.

Preparatory steps

Building owners who presently receive notices from the CBC under section 22FF of the Building Control Act 1989 to submit building energy consumption data will already be familiar with the information required to be submitted once section 22FF is amended to make such reporting mandatory.

In assessing whether the building will exceed the predetermined EUI threshold, as well as its percentile placement, building owners should refer to the latest BCA Building Energy Benchmarking Report (Statistics and Figures) 2023, which is based on the energy consumption data submitted by commercial and non-commercial buildings.

Finally, with the MEI regime applying even to existing buildings that are not undertaking major energy use change or major retrofitting works, there is now a stronger incentive for building owners to more proactively consider options to improve the energy efficiency of their buildings — in order to minimise the risks of falling within the top 25% of their building sub-typology in terms of energy consumption, and consequently the risks of having to incur time and costs to manage the mandatory audit process discussed above.

Building owners can consider available existing schemes that can potentially help to lower the upfront capital costs of energy improvement retrofitting works. For example, the Green Mark Incentive Scheme for Existing Buildings 2.0 (which was introduced on 30 June 2022) is an outcome-based scheme where grants are provided to building owners based on the Green Mark certification rating and the emission reductions achieved through the energy improvement retrofitting works, subject to a cap.

We would be happy to advise you in greater detail on the forthcoming MEI and related changes to the Building Control Act 1989.

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