Which is better to meet ESG goals? Greenfield investments or conversion of existing buildings? Wise people say: it depends. Although a lot of top experts took part in a panel at the first CEE ESG Forum organised by Property Forum and Green Forum in Vienna last November, no clear answer emerged from the discussion.

It has been a busy year for the European Commission’s corporate accountability initiatives, including updates to the EU Sustainable Finance portfolio. These policy changes, reflecting the Commission’s focus on improving the energy performance of the EU building stock, are consequential for EU real estate investors and developers.  New sustainability-linked financing models and Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) ratings standardisation complement the European Green Deal by directing financing to real estate construction and renovation that maximises energy performance. These programs enable EU real estate investors and builders to collaboratively reduce energy use and meet the EU Climate Law’s 2030 goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by fifty-five percent. Strategic policy and research consultant Lisa Chase has summarised the policy framework for Property Forum.

Property Forum is excited to join as Media Partner a free webinar organised by the Romania Green Building Council on the topic of "Investing in and Developing Successful Green/nZEB Building Projects in Romania". The goal of this interactive session is to both inform and gather useful feedback from real estate professionals on how to best accelerate a successful green economy transition.

Sustainability is top of the agenda this year at Davos as governments and businesses around the world are grappling with ways to combat climate change. Of the four global issues the World Economic Forum has said “clearly stand out as urgent and important” at the annual meeting in Switzerland, the first two are how to address environmental challenges harming our ecology and economy, and figuring out how to transform industries to achieve more sustainable business models. The built environment has a huge role to play in developing and implementing solutions, with technology, investment and robust governance central to success, according to the City Momentum Index report from JLL.

Over the past five years CBRE, through the Building Consultancy Division, has managed the building projects of three production units in Romania with a surface area of approximately 50,000 sqm that totals customer investment of over €100 million.

The Palace of the Generala Insurance Company, a historical building in the city centre of Bucharest that served as the headquarters for lender BCR, the local subsidiary of Austrian Erste Bank group, has been put up for sale.

GTC’s latest development, GTC White House has achieved the highest, Platinum certification level under the LEED for Building Design and Construction rating scheme. As of today, this is the second office building which was awarded with this certification in Budapest. The certification process was advised by Colliers International Hungary’s Green Building Advisory Team.

Office developers have for years been struggling with the speed of new technologies. While the innovation cycle in high tech lasts for around 18 months, the development process for office buildings still takes around five years. To ensure tenants and users have easy access to new solutions, Skanska has created an all-in-one operating system for office buildings and workplaces, which can be upgraded over time just like a smartphone.

The Eiffel Square office building has been qualified Excellent in the BREEAM asset performance appraisal method in the In-Use Asset category. Under BREEAM, the world’s leading sustainability appraisal method, the Class A+ Eiffel Square Office Building has been certified as a building operating in an outstandingly environment-conscious manner.

Although offices still comprise the majority of certified green buildings in Hungary, other types of properties are increasingly being certified, according to Colliers International’s latest green building market report.