Home / EU Projects / Energy Poverty Zero (EP-0)
Energy Poverty Zero (EP-0)
Supporting progress towards deep energy retrofit in district, scaling up to fight energy poverty
Over 34 million Europeans live in energy poverty, struggling to afford adequate heating and comfort in their homes. The Energy Poverty Zero (EP-0) project tackles this challenge by accelerating deep energy retrofits in vulnerable districts, combining support for energy-poor households, one-stop-shops, and innovative industrialized solutions.
By bridging efforts in social and private housing, EP-0 leverages the experience of the EU-wide “EnergieSprong” movement to promote affordable, prefabricated retrofit solutions. The project develops tools to assess the industrialized retrofit potential district by district, aiming for scalable, replicable models that translate the benefits and costs of interventions directly for citizens and housing organizations.
A multidisciplinary team—public authorities, housing organizations, SMEs, and foundations—drives EP-0, ensuring that solutions are grounded in real-world needs and practices. This integrated approach supports the energy transition, social inclusion, and the creation of sustainable, zero energy districts across Europe
Energy poverty is a growing social challenge across Europe, demanding urgent and effective solutions. The Energy Poverty Zero (EP-0) project addresses this by developing technical, economic, social, and contractual tools based on the EnergieSprong model to promote widespread energy-efficient retrofits in both social and private housing.
EP-0 primarily targets social housing operators, local communities, and public entities to combat energy poverty through off-site energy renovations in vulnerable districts. Key impacts include:
- – Target Area Identification: Development of a digital tool to pinpoint neighbourhoods with the highest potential for energy-efficient upgrades.
- – Participatory Approach: Active citizen involvement throughout the project, raising awareness and fostering community commitment to energy issues.
- – Contractual Frameworks: Creation of collective procurement schemes uniting public bodies, private owners, and social housing organizations to lower costs and facilitate financing of industrialized retrofits.
R2M Solution leads a critical technical role in the project, including:
- – EP0 ICT tool development. The EP-0 tool assesses the energy status of districts to identify and prioritize areas at high risk of energy poverty for large-scale industrialized prefabricated retrofits.
- – Creation of a repository of prefabricated retrofit solutions, with technical/environmental/economic specifications
- – Development of financing tool for vulnerable populations, including national subsidies
- – Contribution to community engagement
Project manager
Related EU projects