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
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.