- Emira Property Fund has become the first JSE-listed property company in South Africa to receive a government-mandated Energy Performance Certification for one of its buildings – Knightsbridge, Block A, in the heart of Bryanston.
- Knightsbridge is the first of 54 certificates Emira plans to obtain for the mandated commercial buildings in the Emira portfolio.
- Emira has partnered with RMS (Remote Metering Solutions) to meet the new regulatory obligations and progress its environmental sustainability goals.
- Building energy performance reporting is mandatory in South Africa. Read more
“Emira has acted early to certify its buildings. Ensuring compliance with this new regulation is in line with our good governance. We are voluntarily certifying non-mandated buildings in addition to those that require certification, which is consistent with our commitment to best practices, carbon reduction and the environment,” says Ulana van Biljon, COO of Emira Property Fund.
A prime multitenant office property and Emira’s head office location, Knightsbridge brings to life Emira’s commitment to environmentally friendly practices, which is evident throughout its portfolio. It is a showcase of resource efficiency, biodiversity and positive ecological impact.
Ground mounted solar PV installtion at Emira’s Knightsbridge Office Park in Bryanston. Image credit: Emira
Its new multi-level solar farm plays a pivotal role in its energy-neutral operations. This particular building, a relatively new development, was always designed to incorporate a PV farm and achieve net-zero status. Its consumption patterns show it is ideal for a PV installation, and it can accommodate a combination of roof-top and ground-mount structures so the solar farm can achieve the desired energy yield. In fact, its total energy yield is higher than the building’s on-record consumption, taking into account the capacity limits and other impacts of Covid-19.
Importantly, Emira’s solar farms position it to take advantage of future power regulations, including feeding power back into the grid.
Roof top solar PV installation at Emira’s Knightsbridge Office Park in Byanston. Image credit: EMIRA
In the six months July 2021 to December 2021, Emira’s nine PV farms saved 4.8 million kWh and removed 4 639tCO2e emissions annually. Now, with the Knightsbridge installation and the further expansion of its Pretoria Wonderpark Shopping Centre system of 1.6MWp (DC) to 2.8 MWp (DC), its positive environmental impacts will be even more significant.
Van Biljon reports that the offices at Knightsbridge are currently fully let. “Our energy and other environmental initiatives, from biodiversity to water saving, support the letting of future phases of Knightsbridge and prolong its ongoing attractiveness and performance for tenants.”
Geoff Jennett, CEO of Emira, says, “Emira’s purpose of being great in providing great real estate includes minimising our impact on the natural environment. We do this by managing our carbon footprint, improving affordable and clean energy, implementing integrated waste and recycling plans, water management and water harvesting projects and safeguarding biodiversity wherever we invest.”
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
