The UK real estate sector has recorded a consistent decline in average energy consumption across all asset classes over the past three years, according to Deepki's latest environmental performance index.

The data reveals a general decline in consumption across all typologies since 2022’s index, with the logistics and health sectors leading the way with respective 24% and 22% decreases in consumption over that time.

The housing sector has seen a 12% fall over the three-year period, retail 15% and offices 12%.

The one exception is in the hotel sector, whose usage levels have plateaued and currently sit 1% higher than the 2022 levels.

The annual index is the only public European benchmark of the real estate industry’s environmental performance. In its fourth year, it uses consumption data to track the evolution of European building stock’s energy usage across six major markets based on a sample of 400,000 assets.

Deepki attributes the fall in consumption to planned energy efficiency actions and a combination of regulatory pressures, behavioural changes and rising energy costs.

There has been progress in efforts to cut down carbon emissions, with the logistics and health sectors again performing well, with 29% and 28% falls in carbon emissions since 2022 respectively.

Retail saw a 21% decline in emissions over the three-year period, housing and offices both saw a 18% fall and hotels saw an 8% decline.

Despite this, the UK’s real estate sector remains one of the country’s largest carbon dioxide emitters and the sector remains far from reaching its Paris Agreement targets.

Across Europe, Deepki’s data shows year-on-year progress in energy consumption, with most subsectors posting a noticeable decline since 2022. Logistics posted a 20% fall, offices 16%, health 13% and housing 12%.

The hotel sector, however, has seen energy usage levels rise 18% since 2022 as occupancy rates have returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Vincent Bryant, chief executive and co-founder of Deepki, said: “The Deepki index reveals that while European real estate has made energy improvements in recent years, progress remains fragile and uneven, often driven by macroeconomic factors and weather, rather than structural change.

“These factors represent an opportunity for real estate players to align sustainability with financial performance, by leveraging sustainability to reduce vacancy. That being said, the sector remains far from meeting the targets of the Paris Agreement, which will require continued commitment and decisive action.”