FAQ

According to studies conducted by Creos, the grid can already support about one third of households in Luxembourg simultaneously charging electric cars, without intelligent charge management and with a maximum power of 11 kW. The Luxembourg grid is well developed and has a three-phase connection for each house and sufficient capacity. All the more so if one takes into account that network operators are continuously evolving their networks to make them more intelligent and resilient in the future.

Of course, this does not avoid possible local bottlenecks, which would require the implementation of local measures. In large residences in particular, intelligent charge management is necessary for electric mobility. With controlled charging, grid capacities are sufficient to supply all households.
 

Find all information about financing your electric car and the aid programmes at www.cleverfueren.lu . 

Various charging methods are available for your electric car:
•    at home, at work or with friends: you can charge your car from an electrical outlet or from a fixed wall charging station. You just need an electrical cable to hook yourself up. In the case of a domestic connection for a single-family house, a maximum charging power of 11 kW is recommended. Find all our recommendations for installing a charging station on our website!

•    at work, check with your employer to see if charging is allowed; some smart charging stations allow individual metering of electricity consumption;

•    Chargy terminals: in frequently visited places such as municipal administrations, hospitals or P&R, you will find public stations that are accessible with your mKaart. These stations provide charging power for batteries ranging from 3.7 to 22 kW. Find the location of the stations on g-o.lu/chargy;

•    on the motorway: at certain motorway service areas you will find fast charging stations providing charging powers of over 22 kW;
IMAGE
•    outside Luxembourg you can access certain terminals with your Chargy subscription! www.chargy.lu. There are also smartphone applications with which you can access roaming platforms and which enable you to locate and use charging stations in Luxembourg and abroad.  Find out more and plan your trip to Europe with complete peace of mind!

There are various options available to get you around easily and sustainably, which can be combined throughout your day:

•    in addition to producing no CO2 emissions, a bicycle is one of the cheapest and fastest means of transport for covering short distances. And thanks to your mKaart, you can store your bike in one of the many mBoxes available in Luxembourg located close to public transport! For more information, go to mobilitéit.lu;

•    prioritise public transport: by using buses, trams and trains, you will reduce your environmental footprint, avoid traffic jams and save money;

 
•    try carpooling: on average 250,000 empty car seats enter Luxembourg City every day. With carpooling, share your vehicle with other users and make journeys together. In addition to reducing costs and greenhouse gases, this method limits road saturation and traffic jams;

•    for any motorised journeys, an electric car is a more environmentally friendly and sustainable alternative. And thanks to the national network of Chargy charging stations, you can easily charge your vehicle at frequently visited public places! Here you can find the locations of the stations across the country.

Active mobility, alternative sustainable transport: it's now your turn to create your own combination!

In all cases, a properly executed energy retrofit improves the energy efficiency of the building and helps to reduce dependence on higher energy prices by reducing energy consumption for heating. In order to guarantee the sustainability of a dwelling and to maintain/increase its value, its maintenance and modernisation need to be considered in view of the long term. Whereas some retrofitted elements might depreciate in 10 or 20 years, for other elements this can happen much faster. To learn more about the potential for improving the energy efficiency of your home, request a free energy assessment with a Klima-Agence adviser.

Various State and municipal aid is also available to help finance your energy retrofitting project.

According to Creos, the electricity grid is already mostly ready for increased integration of electric cars. The Luxembourg electricity grid is well developed and has a three-phase grid connection and sufficient capacity for every house. In addition, it should be considered that the grid operators are further developing their grids in line with the energy transition in order to make them smarter and more resilient in the future.

In principle, every customer has the right to a charging station with a capacity of 11 kW. For single-family homes, this output is usually always approved. In the case of specific challenges tied to a particular location, special measures may be required. Especially in larger apartment buildings, electromobility requires intelligent charging management. If the charging processes are intelligently controlled, the capacity of the electricity grid is sufficient to supply all households.

Yes, the EPC training courses developed by the Ministry are open to everyone, including municipal employees. They can be booked on the Internet portal www.guichet.lu/experts-energie. In addition, in 2017 a workshop was organised on the subject of site inspections led jointly by the Ministry of the Economy, Klima-Agence and Syvicol. Klima-Agence is also prepared to strengthen its collaboration with the municipalities. If necessary, the municipality can contact the qualified adviser at Klima-Agence. Some additional EPC training courses are also available on the main Luxembourg training portals.

With regard to building permits, the municipalities systematically check that buildings are set back from the municipal public domain or plot boundaries.

As a rule, the planning regulations for setbacks are regulated by the municipalities in their General Development Plan (Plan d’Aménagement Général, PAG) or in the Special Development Plans (Plans d’Aménagement Particulier, PAP).

For municipalities whose PAG has not yet been adapted to include current legislation, the planning regulations relating to setbacks are still included in the written part of the PAG or in the building regulations. For these municipalities, the measurement of setbacks in the event of energy retrofitting is set out individually, by municipality, in those documents.

On the other hand, for those municipalities whose PAGs have been completely revised since 2011, the Grand Ducal Regulation that is the basis for the applicable definitions provides that the building setbacks are to be measured without the additional insulating layer in the case of an energy retrofit.

In both cases, the municipalities can include derogation mechanisms in their regulations in order to promote energy retrofitting, for example through a reduction in the minimum setback to be observed.

Since 1 January 2017, every new construction of a residential building in Luxembourg must be a Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) in terms of energy consumption. As a rule, the NZEB corresponds to the AAA energy classes. However, certain conditions relating to the construction location may cause variations in these energy classes.