Scoop: ING Belgium launches interactive tool empowering companies and individuals to boost their properties’ energy performance

More and more companies and individuals in Belgium need to get their property's energy performance right to meet climate targets. To help them, ING Belgium is launching the ING Sustainable Building Guide: a tool that visualises the concrete actions companies and individuals can take to make their properties more sustainable. This is a first within the Belgian banking landscape. The tool can also be used to estimate investment costs, return, payback time and impact on both energy costs and carbon emissions.

Figures from Statbel¹ show that building ages in Belgium vary greatly from region to region. In Flanders, 33% of buildings were erected after 1981, compared with 22% in Wallonia and barely 7% in the Brussels Capital Region. This is despite the fact that the EPC (energy performance coefficient) score is becoming increasingly decisive when buying a home, according to figures from ING's latest real estate study². The study shows that half of Belgians would no longer buy an energy-guzzling home.

To help households and businesses meet their energy goals, ING is the first bank in Belgium to launch the Sustainable Building Guide: a tool that outlines the investments businesses can make to make their buildings more energy efficient. The Sustainable Building Guide is initially available now for companies operating in the real estate, social profit/non-profit and public sectors. By the second half of the year, the Guide will be rolled out to all Business Banking customers.

Sharply increased energy costs and increasingly stringent regulations are weighing on businesses more and more. As a result, investing in improved energy performance is becoming increasingly important. Those investments also pay off more than ever: in the form of lower energy bills, reduced carbon emissions and, above all, increased property value retention. All these benefits apply equally to private homeowners. That is why we are very proud that the Sustainable Building Guide will offer very concrete support to both the Belgian business landscape and current and future homeowners in making their real estate portfolio more sustainable. Peter Göbel, Head of Business Banking at ING Belgium:

Individuals looking to take out a mortgage loan will also be able to use this tool when considering buying or renovating a property. It allows them to immediately visualise what measures are needed to make their future home more energy efficient. In practice, retail customers will be able to approach a bank's mortgage adviser.

Belgians like to own one or more houses. However, it is not always obvious how to make your home energy-efficient. Many families don’t know where to start. Is a heat pump, the roof or double glazing the most cost-effective investment? And what should you do to reduce energy bills? With the Sustainable Buildings Guide, we aim to guide those buying or renovating to make the right decisions in the energy conversion process. Sali Salieski, Head Retail & Private Banking at ING Belgium:

Algorithms calculate impact of investments on climate and finance
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​ING’s bankers contact customers in person to provide access to the tool. In it, customers will already find an overview of all properties they have financed with ING. It is also possible to add properties financed by other banks or properties the customer is considering buying.

For each building, the tool uses a sophisticated algorithm to display which measures could have a positive impact on energy performance and which investments could make the biggest difference. The Sustainable Building Guide then provides an estimate of the cost of potential investments, the potential energy savings they bring and what the payback period would be.

The customer can immediately see which buildings have the biggest potential for progress. This will allow them to prioritise their investments. Peter Göbel, Head of Business Banking ING Belgium:

Once the customer has selected some of the proposed renovation measures, the Sustainable Building Guide offers a planner that helps spread the investments according to the available financial reserves. This planner also shows how the indicative energy performance score changes over the years.

Customers often rely on expertise and support from their bank. the ING Sustainable Building Guide is our way of answering that need. Climate action is high on the agenda at ING and this service will help reinforce our ambition to become the go-to bank in terms of sustainability within both the corporate and retail segments. Philippe Wallez, Head of ESG at ING Belgium:

¹Building Stock | Statbel (fgov.be)

²ING real estate study (in Dutch): Half of Belgians would no longer buy a home with poor EPC score