This major Horizon 2020 research project, has case studies in the UK, France, Italy and Cyprus.

The Cyprus case study

The settlement is located in the western part of Cyprus, near the town of Peyia (Paphos) (34°89′N and 32°38′E). It is in a rural area on a hillside location, with slope of a medium-steep 20-30% (see Figure 2). The climate in the area is intense Mediterranean, with mild winters and hot summers (Tmax 36°C, Tmin10°C). The settlement size is 255,000m², and it is divided in 3 areas: a rehabilitation center, a research center and a residential area.

The residential part of the development includes 95 individual houses and 9 apartment buildings. Under Zero Plus project 2 houses will be built which are individual residential luxury villas: Villa 1b of a building surface about 270m² and Villa IIa of a building surface about 175m². The 2 houses will be built within the above settlement with the scope to apply their design in the entire settlement, in order to improve the energy efficiency of the whole project. There is also a need for the buildings within the settlement to be aesthetic appealing in order to compete in Cyprus contemporary and conventional house market.

Figure 2. Masterplan of the case study.