Cost-related analysis of implementing energy-efficient retrofit measures in the residential building sector of a middle-income country – A case study of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Abstract

This study presents an in-depth analysis of the cost structure when planning EE retrofit measures in the residential sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The analysis showed that implementing EE retrofit measures would result in substantial energy savings in single-family houses, however, the specific cost of implementing EE retrofit measures per resident for single-family houses is on average 2.8 times higher than for the other three categories; multi-family houses, apartment buildings, and high-rise buildings. When considering the ratio between the investment costs and GDP per capita showed that the citizens in Bosnia and Herzegovina have four times lower ability to finance EE retrofit measures compared to three other representatives EU members and therefore government subsidy schemes may be inevitable for successfully implementing EE retrofit strategies. The general conclusion based on the cost-effective analysis is that EE retrofit investments, may not be financially viable in single-family houses, multifamily houses, and apartment buildings even if supported by government subsidies due to the very low prices of energy sources (coal and wood) used in these specific building prototypes. On contrary, high-rise buildings, that are mainly driven by natural gas and light distillate fuel oil, show a great EE retrofit-driven profitability in. Looking at the financial assessment outcomes, the most significant benefits are mainly related to retrofit scenario that accounts for improvement in the external wall insulation, window glazing, and improving the heating station efficiency. Looking at the carbon emission outcomes, the most significant benefits in reducing the relative and averaged CO2 emission are strongly related to replacing the existing partly coal-burned furnaces (80% firewood + 20 % coal) in single-family houses with exclusive firewood fueled heating systems. This measure may have an enormous impact on reducing the CO2 emission from single-family houses (minimum 83.1 %), which cover 93.1 % of the total residential building stock in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This study may benefit low and middle-income governments in their aim to translate potential EE retrofit measures in the residential sector to a nationwide economic energy-saving policy.