The French cities of Dijon and Saint-Etienne have become the first metropolises to approve the development of highly sustainable “energy-positive” residential towers under a €2 billion ($2.2billion) pan-European investment program launched by Berlin-based Catella Residential Investment Management (CRIM) and France’s building engineering design company Elithis.
The new building permits clear the way for the construction of the two residential towers to start in 2020, with five new schemes planned by the Catella/Elithis joint venture for cities elsewhere in France later next year. The towers will offer apartments at affordable rents, through the supply of surplus power back to national grids, which allows substantial savings on tenants’ energy bills.
Thierry Bievre, CEO at Elithis, said, “The green light to build in Dijon and Saint-Etienne means we are on track, together with our joint venture partner Catella, to develop the first of a new generation of energ
