EU wants to improve performance of televisions, refrigerators, freezers and washing machines

Monday, 13 April 2009 04:32

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Image: www.freefoto.com

EU Member States supported new rules to improve the energy performance of several products at the Ecodesign and Energy Labelling Regulatory Committee meeting. The package sets mandatory energy performance requirements and creates an upgraded energy labelling system for televisions and 'white goods'. These new measures are expected to cut the EU's electricity consumption by 51 terawatt hours by 2020, which corresponds to the combined annual electricity consumption of Portugal and Latvia.

"This package of ecodesign and energy labelling measures is a crucial contribution to achieve our energy efficiency goals. I am particularly pleased with the new energy label, which is very clear for consumers, accelerates the race for top efficient products, and boosts market transformation and energy savings", said Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs.

Under the ecodesign proposals, televisions and white goods, i.e. large electrical home appliances, will not be allowed to consume more than a certain amount of energy. For products meeting the requirements, a new energy label will inform consumers of the actual performance of the appliance and allow for comparison before purchase.

The proposed measures for the new energy label for televisions and white goods build on the well-known "A-G" energy efficiency classes, which are complemented by new dynamic classes "beyond A". The new format allows consumers to judge - and manufacturers to show - at one glance how much "better than A" a product really is. So, for example, "A-20%" meaning that the product consumes 20% less energy than an "A" model product

The measures are expected to result in annual electricity savings of 51 TWh by 2020, with 43 TWh coming from the measure on TVs, 6 TWh from refrigerators and freezers, and 2 TWh from washing machines.

Source: European Commission