For a sustainable society, which is based on renewable energy and high resource efficiency, the wide-spread adoption of nZEBs is vital. The EPBD requires nZEBs by 2019/2021 and long term-targets such as the EU energy roadmap a carbon reduction target of 88 to 91% in the building sector up to 2050. 

The technology for nZEBs is already available and proven. However, it lacks of a large-scale uptake of nZEB building construction and renovation. And there is a substantial gap in reliable data on current market activities: to which extent is the EU building sector on track regarding the ambitious nZEB targets? The core objectives of ZEBRA2020 are: a) tracking the market transition to b) derive recommendations and strategies for c) assisting the European building industry, policy makers at EU and member state level and energy agencies in developing frameworks for accelerating the nZEB market-uptake. Hence, the project directly refers to the IEE call priorities on energy efficiency & renewable energy use in buildings and the importance for “monitoring the market transformation towards nearly zero-energy buildings” from 2013-2015 via detailed evaluations. 

The nZEB-strategies of ZEBRA2020 are based on its market tracking, which builds i. a. on data from the European construction sector, energy performance certificates, nZEB best-practice and scenarios until 2030. The strategy will be developed and communicated via bidirectional national and international policy- and industry workshops and made accessible via an online “nZEB-tracker” based on the projects results and building-databases. This is of high relevance for the target groups. ZEBRA2020 covers seventeen European countries and about 89% of the European building stock and the European population. Thus, ZEBRA2020 is contributing significantly to the ambitious EPBD 2019/2021-target of having a 100%-share of nZEBs for new buildings and substantial increase of their share in the building stock in Europe.