Only 44 per cent of total Grade-A office space across seven cities is green certified, despite environment-friendly buildings being able to command an average rental premium of up to 36 per cent, according to JLL India. In its report ‘Tracking the green footprint in India’s office market’, property consultant JLL India mentioned that the total Grade A (premium) office stock across seven major cities is 732 million square feet, out of which IT stock is 522 million square feet and non-IT 210 million square feet. The seven cities are Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, and Kolkata.
“A total of 321 million sq ft of Grade-A office stock is green certified in India. This is 43.8 per cent of the total stock of 732 million sq ft spread across seven cities, as of March 2022,” JLL India said. The most popular green certifications/ratings systems in India are the USGBC LEED, IGBC, GRIHA and EDGE. “LEED certifications clearly hold the edge among all popular rating systems. In fact, 80 per cent of the entire green-certified Grade-A office stock holds a LEED rating. IGBC ratings are the Indian equivalent of the LEED rating and account for 19 per cent with GRIHA yet to become more prevalent,” the report said. In addition, around 10 million square feet of green-certified stock also holds a dual certification, being LEED as well as EDGE certified. EDGE certifications, an initiative by IFC, are also gaining more traction in Indian real estate across all asset classes.
“It is heartening to note that in India’s Grade A office space, around 235 mn sq ft is certified as LEED Gold or higher. However, with just around 44 per cent penetration levels, green certifications still have a long way to go…,” the consultant said. While upgrading and retrofitting for aspirational green certifications are more easily achieved in singly-owned and professionally managed buildings, this may be a tedious process for strata-titled buildings, the report said. The property consultant noted that there are obvious commercial incentives to getting a green rating in terms of rental premiums and better occupancy levels.