BREEAM Version 7: A welcome step towards electrification and lower operational carbon
At Cura Energy, we’re delighted to see that the newly released BREEAM Version 7 (published summer 2025) places greater emphasis on operational carbon reduction and the electrification of HVAC systems. This aligns perfectly with the projects and outcomes we deliver for our clients.
BREEAM Version 7 makes it clear that the future is electric. The updated standard places much greater emphasis on reducing operational carbon through realistic in-use energy modelling and performance verification, rather than relying solely on design-stage predictions.
For projects aiming for the top BREEAM Outstanding rating, the message is uncompromising. No on-site fossil fuel use is allowed! Electrification of heating, cooling, and hot water is not just encouraged, it’s effectively essential. By removing gas-fired systems, integrating heat pumps, heat reclaim, and smart controls, buildings can align with the UK’s decarbonising grid and deliver measurable, ongoing carbon savings.
We’re already delivering electrification
In the food retail sector especially, we’ve played an active role in the accelerated push to decarbonise buildings. Many of our current projects are literally categorised as ‘Electrification’. These programmes of work have a clear and singular purpose: to remove gas from buildings.
Our teams work closely with our customers to upgrade and adapt building management systems (BMS), thus enabling the safe and efficient removal of gas-fired plant. This enables integration with cleaner, greener tech - including heat producing, non-gas equipment (heat pumps, electric heater batteries, heat reclaim from refrigerant plant).
By making these changes, we help our customers to cut their operational carbon, future-proof their estates, and improve the resilience of their heating and cooling systems. All of this is in line with the sustainability goals championed by BREEAM v7.
The message from the latest BREEAM update is clear: the journey to net zero means prioritising electrification and minimising reliance on fossil fuels. We couldn’t agree more.
About Cura Energy
Cura Energy (Cura) is a purpose-led specialist sub-contractor focused on smart energy and building solutions for complex and multi-site estates. Since 2011, we’ve helped carbon-conscious organisations across the UK take control of their building performance through intelligent BeMS and EMS strategies.
If you’re looking for a specialistic in BMS integration for your electrification projects – we’re here to help. We are proud to be approved Partners of global hardware and software manufacturers, Siemens, Priva, RDM and TREND.