Analysis of Green Building Incentives on Thermal Comfort and Cost-Effectiveness: The Cases of Italy and Türkiye

Abstract

Public buildings play a critical role in national decarbonization strategies and green energy transitions due to their high energy consumption densities, large occupant capacities, and potential to drive public awareness. Optimizing energy efficiency in these structures not only alleviates the financial burden on public budgets but also serves as a benchmark for sustainable urban development. To investigate the energy-saving potentials, thermal comfort dynamics, and financial feasibilities within this sector, this study selects two university buildings from two different countries with distinct climatic, structural, and operational profiles as comparative case studies: university buildings in Türkiye (TR) and Italy (IT), respectively. A total of seven tailored retrofitting scenarios were developed based on country-specific legislative frameworks and subsidy mechanisms: the Minimum Environmental Criteria (CAM) and Conto Termico 3.0 for Italy, and the Public Buildings Energy Efficiency Project (KABEV), Energy Performance Contracting (EPC), and Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (NSEB) mandates for Türkiye. The scenarios evaluate deep building envelope insulation, high-efficiency window replacements, lighting automation (LED with daylighting controls), mechanical ventilation with heat recovery units (HRV), air-to-water heat pump integrations, and rooftop photovoltaic (PV) installations using calibrated DesignBuilder simulation models. The quantitative results demonstrate that country-specific green building incentives drastically enhance both the energy performance and financial viability of deep retrofits. For the Turkish case study, the comprehensive near-zero energy building (nZEB) retrofitting package (TR-4) successfully reduced annual primary energy consumption by 75% (from 284 to 71 kWh/m2·year) and cut annual thermal comfort discomfort hours by 72% (from 3147 to 880 h), yielding a Subsidized Net Present Value (NPV) of +310,600 €. Similarly, for the Italian case study, the holistic retrofit combined with rooftop photovoltaic integration (IT-4) achieved an 80% energy reduction (dropping from 128 to 25.6 kWh/m2·year), minimized annual discomfort hours to 45 h, and generated a Subsidized NPV of +425,500 €. Furthermore, national incentive mechanisms shortened simple payback periods by more than half, establishing that targeted public policy is vital to accelerate public sector building decarbonization while ensuring long-term fiscal profitability.