Tertiary Eco-Energy: energy consumption data must be submitted by September 30

The tertiary decree (No. 2019-771 of July 23, 2019) concerns owners or operators of buildings housing tertiary activities (including data centers) in the private or public sector, where the surface area (or cumulative surface area) exceeds 1,000 m².

Stemming from the ELAN law, the tertiary decree or "tertiary eco-energy scheme," published in July 2019, requires buildings in the tertiary sector to achieve significant energy savings. The objectives are progressive. They can be achieved as a relative value (percentage reduction compared to a reference year) or an absolute value (performance level to be reached set by decree, expressed in kWh/m²/year).

Building owners or operators must create an account and declare the consumption of their tertiary premises on the OPERAT platform (Observatory of energy performance, renovation, and tertiary actions). This platform is managed by ADEME.

The so-called "Absolute Values III" decree of November 28, 2023 (No. 286) specified the energy consumption reduction targets expressed in absolute value for the first decade (2030 horizon) for certain categories of tertiary activities, including data centers.

Within data centers, the calculation of the absolute value to be achieved takes into account the intensity of use and the nature of the activities in the building.

• For IT rooms, the main effort focuses on reducing the consumption of IT equipment and cooling systems based on the entity's surface area.
• For offices, the objectives are aligned with those of other tertiary buildings and mainly concern HVAC systems and other consumption not specific to IT activity (surface area per workstation, number of hours).

Since the publication of the decree of November 28, 2023, consumption for year n-1 must be declared before September 30 of each year.

It should be noted that a new decree, published in July 2024, specified the methods for calculating the climate adjustment to be integrated into the absolute value target.

The data to be submitted on the OPERAT platform are as follows:

• Entity concerned;
• Surface area of each building or part of a building;
• Tertiary activity performed;
• Energy consumption of the reference year on which the definition of objectives is based;
• Energy consumption of the past year;
• Intensity of use characteristics.

In the event of failure to submit information on the OPERAT platform, failure to submit an action program, or failure to meet objectives, a sanction system based on the Name & Shame principle applies. Prior to this, a formal notice is sent by the prefect to the operators concerned by the decree. Offenders face an administrative fine of €7,500 for legal entities.

Once the data is submitted, the OPERAT platform provides an annual report of consumption compared to reduction targets expressed in absolute value for a large number of activities in mainland France. The certificate is supplemented by a Tertiary Eco-Energy rating, which qualifies progress in the energy consumption reduction process.