Bulgarian Energy Efficiency Consultant Exam study materials
Bulgarian Energy Efficiency Consultant Exam study resources

Bulgarian Energy Efficiency Consultant Exam study plan

Bulgarian Energy Efficiency Consultant Exam · Give each week a clear focus.

8 weeks · About 7 hours per week

Week 1

Legal and Regulatory Framework for Energy Efficiency & Energy Auditing Methodology and Standards

  • Map the Bulgarian legal hierarchy for energy efficiency from the Energy Efficiency Act down to the ordinances on energy audits and building energy performance, and write a one-page annotated outline of how the instruments interlock.

  • Identify which obligated parties, thresholds, and deadlines in the national framework trigger an energy audit versus an energy performance certificate, and tabulate at least eight triggering scenarios.

  • Define the audit scope, system boundaries, and baseline year for a chosen reference building in line with the applicable Bulgarian methodology and the EN 16247 series, and record the decision in a scope memorandum.

  • List the required qualifications and registration duties of an energy efficiency consultant, including continuing education and independence obligations, and self-assess your own gaps against that list.

Your checkpoint

A five-page regulatory map plus scope memorandum for one reference building, cross-referencing each legal trigger to the article or ordinance that creates it.

Week 2

Energy Auditing Methodology and Standards

  • Build a data collection checklist covering utility bills, sub-metering, nameplate surveys, occupancy schedules, and degree-day normalization, then apply it to your reference building.

  • Compute a full energy balance by end use (heating, cooling, ventilation, domestic hot water, lighting, plug loads, process) and reconcile it against metered consumption within a stated tolerance.

  • Select and justify measurement instruments for a walk-through versus a detailed audit, stating accuracy class and calibration requirements for each parameter.

  • Draft the audit report structure required by the national methodology, including executive summary, methodology, findings, and measure tables, and peer-review it against the standard's reporting clauses.

Your checkpoint

A completed energy balance spreadsheet with reconciliation error under ten percent and a signed-off audit report skeleton.

Week 3

Building Envelope and Thermal Performance & Energy Auditing Methodology and Standards

  • Calculate U-values for a multilayer wall, roof, and floor assembly by hand and verify them against the normative maximum values for the relevant building category and climate zone.

  • Quantify linear thermal bridging at balconies, window reveals, and slab edges, and explain how to source or derive psi-values when manufacturer data is absent.

  • Diagnose at least three common envelope defects (moisture bridging, discontinuous insulation, unsealed penetrations) and prescribe a remediation with an estimated savings range.

  • Assess glazing and shading performance using solar factor, light transmittance, and frame type, and rank retrofit options for the reference building.

Your checkpoint

An envelope calculation workbook with U-value and thermal bridge calculations for every assembly in the reference building and a ranked retrofit shortlist.

Week 4

HVAC, Lighting, and Building Energy Systems & Energy Auditing Methodology and Standards

  • Characterize the heating and domestic hot water plant, including generation efficiency, distribution losses, and control strategy, and compute seasonal efficiency for each.

  • Evaluate ventilation and air-conditioning systems for specific fan power, heat recovery effectiveness, and part-load behavior, and flag any non-compliant components.

  • Produce a lighting power density calculation per zone and compare it with normative limits, then propose a control strategy for each zone type.

  • Identify cross-system interactions, such as reduced envelope losses lowering boiler part-load efficiency, and document at least four such interactions.

Your checkpoint

A building systems assessment report covering HVAC, domestic hot water, ventilation, and lighting, with seasonal efficiency figures and a prioritized findings list.

Week 5

Energy Performance Certificates and Building Certification & Energy Efficiency Measures and Economic Analysis

  • Compute the energy performance indicator for the reference building using the national calculation method and assign the correct energy class label.

  • Assemble the full certificate input set, including reference area, delivered and primary energy, and renewable share, and check it for internal consistency.

  • Build a measure package table with capital cost, annual savings, simple payback, net present value, and internal rate of return for at least ten measures.

  • Rank measures by cost-effectiveness and by abatement cost, and assemble a phased investment plan that respects a stated budget ceiling.

Your checkpoint

A draft energy performance certificate for the reference building plus a ten-measure economic appraisal with payback, NPV, and IRR at a stated discount rate.

Week 6

Energy Efficiency Measures and Economic Analysis & Renewable Energy Integration and Nearly Zero-Energy Buildings

  • Design a nearly zero-energy building pathway for the reference building, sequencing demand reduction before system efficiency before renewable supply.

  • Size a solar photovoltaic and a solar thermal contribution using site-specific yield data, and state the self-consumption and export assumptions explicitly.

  • Evaluate heat pump and biomass options against the applicable sustainability criteria and calculate the resulting primary energy and renewable share.

  • Test the pathway against the national nearly zero-energy definition and document any residual gap with a bridging measure.

Your checkpoint

A nearly zero-energy building roadmap for the reference building showing primary energy before and after, renewable share achieved, and the cost of closing any remaining gap.

Week 7

Measurement, Verification, and Energy Monitoring & Energy Efficiency Measures and Economic Analysis

  • Write a measurement and verification plan that defines the baseline, adjustment method, measurement boundary, and independent variables for the top three measures.

  • Select an appropriate option from the measurement and verification framework for each measure based on savings uncertainty and cost, and justify the choice.

  • Set up an energy monitoring dashboard structure with normalized performance indicators, exception alerts, and a monthly review cadence.

  • Specify how to handle non-routine adjustments such as occupancy change or plant failure without contaminating the reported savings.

Your checkpoint

A measurement and verification plan for three measures plus a monitoring dashboard specification with indicator definitions and alert thresholds.

Week 8

Professional Ethics, Reporting, and Consultant Practice & Energy Performance Certificates and Building Certification

  • Draft a client-facing executive summary that translates technical findings into decisions, states assumptions and limitations plainly, and avoids overstated savings claims.

  • Apply the conflict-of-interest and independence rules to three constructed scenarios and write the disclosure you would issue in each.

  • Complete two timed mock exams under exam conditions and analyze every error by domain to target final review.

  • Consolidate a one-page personal formula and reference sheet covering the calculations you most often got wrong in practice.

Your checkpoint

A polished final audit and certificate package for the reference building plus a scored mock exam log with a remediation list per weak domain.

Milestones

Week 2: Energy balance reconciles to metered consumption within ten percent, and the audit report skeleton contains every section required by the national methodology.

Week 4: Envelope and systems assessments are complete for the reference building, with at least seven documented findings and no unresolved data gaps in the top three end uses.

Week 6: Certificate draft is internally consistent and the nearly zero-energy pathway shows a quantified primary energy reduction with a stated renewable share.

Week 8: Both mock exams scored, every incorrect answer assigned to a domain, and the final package passes a self-review against the reporting and ethics checklist.