The Minister for Public Works and Planning Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi and the Parliamentary Secretary for European Funds Chris Bonett visited the works being carried out on the building of the Department of Public Works, known as the ‘Project House’, which, with an investment of around € 4 million, is being changed to be more sustainable in energy use.
Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi stressed the importance of this project as this multi-purpose building will be much more energy efficient, which is much needed to operate all its offices.
Minister Zrinzo Azzopardi explained that this project will reduce energy demand, thus reducing emissions, and as a result create a better environment for all. The Minister stressed that it is very important to carry out such works in various public and even private buildings for Malta to meet its environmental goals for the coming years.
Parliamentary Secretary Chris Bonett explained that the work being done on Project House is part of a series of projects being carried out by the European Union’s Recovery and Resilience Fund.
“European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen had called Malta’s plan an environmentally friendly plan. In fact, 54% of the initiatives in the plan are environmental initiatives “, he said. He also said that Malta has allocated € 316 million and will see to it that the government meets the targets set with the European Commission and that they are met on time.
Also present were the Director General of the Department of Public Works, Architect Stephen Bonello, the Director of the Project Design and Engineering Directorate, Architect Nadia Gatt Curmi, and Architect Anne Casha, who took care of the project which he explained in more detail.
The works carried out consist of attaching insulation boards to the facades of the building as well as an exterior shell with local strong stone where a ventilated cavity system has been created. The openings were all made with an aluminum thermal break frame with double glazed glass. The existing countertop was removed from the roof to replace the insulation and then a new countertop was re-installed with a heat reflective coating.
More panels were installed on the roof as well as others that were attached to the south-facing facades. Louvres were placed in front of the windows in these facades to cut off the heat of the summer sun. In addition, more efficient centralized VRF air conditioning systems have been installed. A Building Management System (BMS) has also been put in place to operate as an energy management system for all services and will result in a reduction in energy use. This project is expected to be completed by next June.
