Small towns in France facing the challenge of energy renovation of their buildings

This third study co-carried out by the AFL and the APVF complements the publications carried out in 2021 and 2022 on the financing of the ecological transition, then on the support of European funds in financing adaptation to climate change for this stratum of communities.

A first study devoted to the challenge posed by the renovation of buildings in small towns in France

The AFL and the APVF are devoting a study to the challenges of energy renovation of municipal buildings at the scale of Small Towns, a stratum of municipalities with between 2.500 and 25.000 inhabitants.

For Marie Ducamin, president of the AFL-ST Board of Directors: “With this new study, the AFL confirms that it supports Small Towns, certainly by providing funding, but also by providing expertise and providing clear tools that allow us to draw up a picture details of the solutions available to finance the energy renovation of buildings. »

For Christophe Bouillon, mayor of Barentin and President of the APVF: “Year after year, the AFL and APVF address the most pressing funding concerns for small-town mayors. In this study, elected officials express their certainty about the need for energy renovation of buildings, but also their doubts about the financing methods. I hope that this document can accompany them. »

Thermal renovation of buildings: a necessity

The study highlights the fact that the acceleration of thermal renovation in Small Towns is now a necessity. Indeed, the energy crisis has highlighted the urgency of certain renovations. The ecological ambition of mayors, coupled with growing regulatory obligations, however, comes up against the limited savings capacities of municipalities.

Facing the investment wall: the challenge of engineering and financing solutions

If the issue of financing is central, the study also highlights that there is first and foremost an engineering issue. The first step, that of knowing your built heritage, still varies greatly from one municipality to another.

Regarding financing arrangements, elected officials from Small Towns consider that they must be supported to meet their investment expenses. It is above all towards common law grants that they turn to carry out their projects. The study also aims to present complementary solutions such as loans, intracting, European co-financing, or even energy saving certificates.

The AFL and the APVF issue five main types of proposals:

1. Generalize the involvement of territorial energy unions to guide municipalities in the implementation of building diagnostics
2. Raise awareness and train all municipal staff
3. Share engineering at the level of the EPCI or a union
4. Sustain and expand the Green Fund
5. Simplify the normative landscape

This study is based on qualitative interviews carried out with elected members of the APVF, on a quantitative survey carried out among several hundred members of this association, and on the general study on the renovation of community buildings published by the AFL in collaboration with student territorial administrators and territorial chief engineers in spring 2023.

The study is to be found in full here.