The energy market tensions in which the EU has found itself in recent months is a stark reminder of the risks and costs that tend to come with extensive reliance on imported fossil fuels, exacerbated by Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Energy prices are once again at the centre of political attention, given the very real impact they have on Europe’s citizens and business. Yet, it is not Europe’s first energy crisis, nor is it likely to be the last unless we increase resilience by stepping up investments in the green transition and, in doing so, putting energy efficiency first.
The EU ecodesign and energy labelling rules require that the Commission regularly present updated, rolling ecodesign and energy labelling working plans. On 30 March, together with the proposal for a Sustainable Products Regulation, the Commission adopted the new ecodesign and energy labelling working plan 2022-2024. It strengthens the focus on the circularity aspects of ecodesign and labelling requirements for energy-related products and tyres. It also identifies priorities and new candidates for efficiency product groups and explores new product-specific requirements on material efficiency aspects, particularly on recycled content, critical raw materials, reparability and durability.
The existing ecodesign and labelling requirements alone are estimated to have saved EU citizens more than €120 billion in 2021. With the current energy prices, this figure could exceed €250 billion in 2022. Energy savings are also expected to increase in the coming decade, as the existing stock of appliances is gradually replaced by models meeting EU ecodesign requirements.
The actions outlined in the 2022-2024 working plan will further contribute in various ways to increasing energy savings and strengthening minimum efficiency requirements by:
- reviewing and updating current rules for products, adding requirements in areas such as spare parts availability
- identifying new product groups
- introducing new rules covering product groups currently not regulated such as smartphones, and tablets that contribute to improving their durability and reparability
- supporting effective national market surveillance and helping manufacturers, importers and retailers to comply with ecodesign rules
- modernizing and rescaling energy labels to better guide consumers in choosing among new generations of products available on the market
The EU’s ecodesign and energy labelling policies are Single Market rules that make it easier and less costly for business, citizens and governments alike to contribute to the clean energy transition and deliver on the EU’s energy efficiency and wider ‘European Green Deal’ objectives, including the Circular Economy agenda. They create business opportunities and increase resilience by setting harmonised rules for ‘energy-related products’ on aspects such as energy consumption, water consumption, emission levels and material efficiency, they stimulate both demand for and supply of more sustainable products whilst reducing energy user expenditure significantly: estimates indicate that savings in 2021 exceeded EUR 120 billion and could reach the double in 2022.
The need for regularly reviewing and adapting existing rules, to ensure they remain relevant, effective and fit for purpose in the light of market and technological developments, is a fundamental principle of Better Regulation. A key lesson learned is that over time the aggregate effort required for such critical ‘maintenance’ efforts becomes significant as the scope of the legislation increases (in terms of products and types of requirements), and that this work needs to be better factored in when setting priorities. Otherwise, it will entail delays that have important consequences in terms of foregone benefits.
The Commission is due to present or adopt 38 reviews before the end of 2024, and another 8 in 2025 which consequently will need to be initiated in advance. These reviews together constitute significant opportunities for further energy and material efficiency savings: a rough first estimate suggests a potential of at least 170 TWh (ca. 600 petajoute (PJ), or the heat demand of 15 million dwellings) of additional use-phase savings, complemented by additional benefits related to material efficiency/circular economy but they will also represent a major effort and dominate the work carried out under the current working plan.
Based on the standard on the ability to repair, reuse and upgrade (EN 45554) the Commission’s Joint Research Centre has developed a repair score system. The Commission is exploring the potential of introducing it for relevant products, possibly as information on the energy label for specific products such as smart phones and tablets. This work is ground breaking and is likely to influence industry practices globally for the better.
In addition, the Methodology of Ecodesign for Energy-related Products being revised to introduce a more systematic way of covering circular economy aspects when performing preparatory or review studies on specific product groups. In the upcoming work, the trend towards increased emphasis on circular economy will continue by integrating relevant requirements based on the experiences gathered so far, in particular with the implementation of the 2019 measures. Such requirements would be supported by improvements in the methodology and possibilities for standardisation, and they should contribute to the transition to the new legislative framework on Ecodesign for Sustainable Products.
Looking ahead, the Commission will also further assess the possibility and appropriateness of establishing more product-specific requirements.
How the EU Energy Labelling and Ecodesign Legislation Helps Improve Energy Efficiency
Ecodesign sets common EU wide minimum standards to eliminate the least performing products from the market. The energy labels provide a clear and simple indication of the energy efficiency and other key features of products at the point of purchase. This makes it easier for consumers to save money on their household energy bills and contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the EU.
Air conditioners come with an energy label showing their energy efficiency, which includes information on the energy rating of their cooling and heating functions and indications of their hourly or annual energy consumption and also their sound levels. Air conditioners are subject to EU ecodesign requirements. An air conditioner manufactured in accordance with these requirements will save €340 on energy bills during its lifetime.
The EU regulations for electronic displays apply to all electronic displays, including televisions, computer monitors and digital signage displays. They do not apply, for example, to screens smaller than 100 cm2, interactive whiteboards, photo frames, medical displays, projectors or industrial displays.
Electronic displays, like televisions, computer monitors or signage displays, are labelled on an energy efficiency scale that ranges from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient). The new scaling system is improved and better takes into account the screen area. The new labels will also show the efficiency of a product when it shows content in HDR, as it can consume twice as much energy as other settings. In addition, the label will also show information on the diagonal size of the display and its resolution, so that consumers can better compare similar displays.
New cooking appliances come with an energy label showing their energy efficiency class. These range from A+++ to G for range hoods and ovens. For ovens, these ratings are based on their energy efficiency. For range hoods, in addition to the energy efficiency of the appliance, the efficiency of the extraction, integrated lighting system and grease filtering system is also taken into account.
By switching to one of the most energy efficient electric ovens, you can save up to €230 over 15 years. With more efficient cooking appliances, Europe will also be able to save around 1% of the annual energy consumed by households by 2030. This means around 2.7 million tonnes of CO2 avoided annually by 2030 – about the annual emissions of four medium size power plants. Microwave ovens, outdoor cooking appliances and grills are excluded from these requirements.
The EU energy label is a widely recognised feature on household products, like lightbulbs, televisions or washing machines, and has helped consumers make informed choices for more than 25 years. To ensure a smooth transition from the old labels to the new ones, the European Commission has developed information tools to help consumers, manufactures and retailers along the way. The European Product Registry for Energy Labelling (https://ec.europa.eu/info/energy-climate-change-environment/standards-tools-and-labels/products-labelling-rules-and-requirements/energy-label-and-ecodesign/product-database_en ) is an online database of key importance in this aspect, as it will allow consumers to directly access information for specific products simply by scanning the QR code featured on the new energy labels.