Fourteen countries have signed the Product Efficiency Call to Action, which aims to double the efficiency by 2030 of four priority products – air conditioners, refrigerators, industrial motor systems and lighting – that account for 40% of global energy consumption.
The countries include Australia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Germany, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Nigeria, Sweden and the U.K., according to a post on the website of CLASP, an NGO dedicated to improving appliance efficiency. These commitments were made leading up to and during the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, U.K., in November.
“These endorsements amount to the largest commitment ever between governments to improve product efficiency,” said Sharon Ikeazor, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Environment.
The total CO2e emissions savings potential of this commitment amounts to almost 465 coal-fired power stations avoided over approximately 10 years, added Ikeazor. A 2018 knowledge brief by the Clean Cooling Collaborative (formerly K-CEP), estimated that improving the efficiency of cooling equipment between then and 2050 could prevent about 80Gt of CO2e emissions.
The Product Efficiency Call to Action was launched in September by the Super-Efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) Initiative, of the Clean Energy Ministerial and its partners. Those include CLASP, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the U.K. Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The Product Efficiency Call to Action is also working in partnership with EP100 and the Race to Zero to engage businesses to commit to fast action on energy efficiency.
The Call to Action seeks to “drive ambition on product energy efficiency standards to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, promote business innovation and ensure consumer access to affordable and high-performing technologies,” said CLASP.
The SEAD website will house the Product Efficiency Opportunity Dashboards, which visually detail the economic and energy savings of further appliance efficiency improvements in potential signatory nations.
As part of the Race to Zero initiative. ATMOsphere (formerly shecco), the publisher of this website) provided market research services to the Environmental Investigation Agency in the preparation of its “The Pathway to Net Zero Cooling Product List.” The publication focuses on appliances operating with ultra-low-GWP natural refrigerants and with high energy efficiency, providing policymakers with an easily researchable list of examples subdivided by sector.
Paving the way to net zero
Improving energy efficiency is viewed as helping to pave the way to achieving net-zero emission targets. IEA analysis clearly shows the importance of energy efficiency on the path to net-zero, said Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the IEA: “These policies have already helped to halve the energy consumption of major appliances in many markets, allowing consumers to benefit from significant savings while also lowering greenhouse gas emissions.”
Government support for the Call to Action is supplemented by corporate pledges from around the world through EP100 – the global network of energy-smart companies improving their energy productivity to lower emissions. EP100 is an initiative of the Climate Group, a nonprofit organization that works with business and government leaders around the world to address climate change.
More than 20 nonprofit energy and civil society organizations, including universities, recognize the importance of appliance efficiency to limiting global warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F). “The science tells us that appliance standards will play a critical role in energy efficiency policy over the next decade to 2030,” said Helen Clarkson, CEO of the Climate Group. “Therefore, it is crucial that we leverage the power of the world’s leading decision makers to raise ambition in this area.”
“Governments must listen to the demand signals of businesses, including EP100’s Schneider Electric [owner of refrigeration controller manufacturer Eliwell] and Arçelik,” which showcased their plans at the COP26 Energy Day, said Climate Group’s Corporate Partnerships Director Mike Peirce.
“These endorsements amount to the largest commitment ever between governments to improve product efficiency.”
Sharon Ikeazor, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Environment
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