The European Union’s ambition to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 requires a massive decarbonisation effort in the building sector, which currently accounts for 36% of GHG emissions and 40% of energy consumption in Europe. Deep renovation at scale is a fundamental condition to achieve these goals. However, fragmentation of the renovation market remains one of the main barriers.

One of our EU-funded projects, BARRIO aims to propose a solution for addressing renovation fragmentation, improving energy efficiency, and fostering sustainability. Its approach aligns with the EU-level objectives for deep renovation and carbon reduction in the building sector.

The initiative is providing innovative tools and approaches to support large-scale, aggregated, and prefabricated renovation.

Central to the project is the Defragmentation Multidisciplinary Toolkit (DMT), which integrates a digital APP Generation tool capable of automatically producing renovation roadmaps and business models for clusters of buildings at neighbourhood level.

BARRIO is currently testing its approach in four pilot ecosystems:

Emilia-Romagna (Italy)

Valencian Community (Spain)

Municipality of Ravne na Koroškem (Slovenia)

Gabrovo District (Bulgaria).

To strengthen replication, the project will activate at least one additional new market during its implementation, ensuring wider diversity of data, contexts, and validation opportunities.

Objective of the Tender:

The awarded applicant will test the BARRIO DMT and APP Generation Tool in their own local context, providing feedback, data, and lessons learned. This activity will complement the four pilot sites and feed into activities on Replication, Sustainability and Policy Uptake.

Scope of Work:

The successful applicant will be required to:

  1. Select and test a relevant building cluster in their local context, consisting of at least 3 buildings (multi-family), ensuring representativeness in terms of typology and renovation needs.
  2. Apply the BARRIO DMT and APP Generation tool to generate renovation roadmaps and business models for the selected cluster, supported by the project partners for technical onboarding and ICT guidance.
  3. Collect and provide structured feedback on usability, relevance, and barriers, both technical and organisational.
  4. Engage local stakeholders (housing associations, municipalities, SMEs, financing actors) through at least one workshop or focus group, in collaboration with Housing Europe, to ensure capacity building and replication potential.
  5. Deliver interim and final reports including both quantitative data (building tested, typologies, KPIs such as estimated energy savings, cost reduction, replication potential) and qualitative insights (barriers, enablers, policy gaps).

Deliverables:

  1. Onboarding Note (September 2026):

Description of selected cluster, local context, key stakeholders.

  • Interim report (December 2026):

Results from first test of DMT and APP tools including relevant KPIs, as well as outcomes and qualitative insights from workshop or focus group organised in collaboration with Housing Europe.

  • Final Report (March 2027):

Comprehensive results including KPIs, qualitative analysis, lessons learned, and recommendations for replication.

Maximum budget available:

For these tasks the maximum available budget is 61.900 EURO (excluding VAT).

Profile of the Applicant

The applicant should:

  • Be a public, cooperative, or social housing company based in the EU.
  • Demonstrate in-depth expertise in energy retrofitting at neighbourhood/district level, including knowledge of industrialised or modular solutions.
  • Have experience in urban planning, housing governance, or business models for renovation aggregation.
  • Show capacity to work in international and EU-funded project environments.
  • Be proficient in English (written and spoken).
  • Possess basic ICT skills; technical support for the DMT platform will be provided by BARRIO partners.

Duration and execution period

The requested services and their provision are linked to the work plan of the project LIFE23-CET-BARRIO, co-funded by the European Union, and are limited in time to the implementation period of the BARRIO project.

The contractor commits to respecting the calendar indicated in their offer, aligned on following project timeline and delivery deadlines:

  • Onboarding – 30th June 2026
  • Onboarding note – 25th September 2026
  • First test of DMT and APP tools – 30th October 2026
  • Interim report – 18th December 2026
  • Second test of DMT and APP tools – 1st February 2027
  • Final report – 12th March 2027

Selection criteria

The selection criteria are described in the specification for public service contract.

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF TENDER: 16/02/2026 at 6 pm CET

BARRIO is a 3-year project co-funded by the European Union under reference LIFE23-CETBARRIO – Project 101167624.