Announcements FACTSHEET ON CONSERVING ENERGY IN THE HOUSEHOLD AND INDUSTRY SECTORS Enhanced energy labels will come into effect on 1 September 2014. These new labels will show rescaled energy ratings and estimated annual energy cost information so that consumers can better differentiate the more energy efficient products and consider the life-cycle ownership cost in their purchase decisions. 166 energy intensive companies are now registered under the Energy Conservation Act. Introduction 1 A key strategy for Singapore to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is to improve energy efficiency. Therefore, the National Environment Agency (NEA) has been actively promoting energy efficiency in the household and industry sectors through enacting legislation, raising awareness, offering incentives and providing information. Energy Efficiency Initiatives in the Household Sector 2 In order to encourage households to choose energy efficient home appliances, NEA has implemented several initiatives to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. The two initiatives are the Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme (MELS) and Mandatory Energy Performance Standards (MEPS). Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme (MELS) 3 The implementation of MELS in 2008 made it mandatory for air-conditioners and refrigerators, which are energy intensive home appliances, to carry energy labels. These energy labels provide information to consumers so that they can take into account the energy costs when purchasing appliances. Energy labelling for household electrical appliances also allows consumers to compare the energy efficiency performance and life-cycle costs of different models, and to make better informed purchasing decisions. 4 To encourage consumers to purchase more efficient appliances for energyintensive household appliances, NEA will be extending MELS to televisions in April 2014. The design of the MELS labels will also be enhanced in September 2014 to reflect rescaled energy ratings and estimated annual energy cost information. This will allow consumers to better differentiate the more energy efficient products and consider the life-cycle ownership cost in their purchase decisions. 1
Figure 1a. Current MELS Label Figure 1b. New Enhanced MELS Label Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) 5 MEPS were introduced in 2011 to prohibit sale of appliance models that do not meet the minimum specified energy efficiency levels. Through the removal of inefficient models from our market, this initiative allows households to select the more efficient models and benefit from lower life-cycle cost savings. 6 In April 2014, MEPS will be extended to clothes dryers. The estimated annual energy savings potential from switching from a 2-tick to a 3-tick 6 kg clothes dryer is about $36 1. As announced at the Committee of Supply (COS) Debate 2012, MEPS will also be extended to general lighting in 2014. Please refer to Annex A for a summary on the potential annual energy savings per household for air-conditioners, refrigerators, televisions, clothes dryers and general lighting. 7 Over the years, the proportion of energy efficient air-conditioners and refrigerators purchased by consumers has also been steadily increasing as suppliers introduced more efficient models. In 2012, about 85% of air-conditioners and 95% of refrigerators sold are rated 3- or 4-ticks. This marks a significant improvement from 2008 when only 50% of air-conditioners and 45% of refrigerators sold were rated 3- or 4-ticks. See Annex B. 8 In view of this positive response from suppliers, NEA will progressively tighten MEPS levels and will consider extending MEPS to other appliances. 9 With the increased availability of more energy efficient appliances, consumers can expect such appliances to become more affordable. They stand to reap significant cost savings by purchasing and using energy efficient appliances. A summary on the progress of the MELS and MEPS Schemes can be found in Annex C. Energy Efficiency Initiatives in the Industry Sector 1 Based on average tariff of 2009 2013 incl 7% GST and a usage pattern of three times a week. 2
10 The industry sector accounts for more than half of Singapore s energy demand. In an effort to improve energy efficiency and competitiveness in the industry sector, NEA introduced mandatory energy management requirements for energy intensive users. These requirements came into effect on 22 April 2013 under the Energy Conservation Act (ECA). 166 corporations are currently registered under the ECA. 11 The energy intensive users affected are those with business activities that consume more than 54 terajoules of energy 2 annually in at least two of the three preceding years and whose business activities are attributable to manufacturing and manufacturing-related services; supply of electricity, gas, steam, compressed air, and chilled water for air-conditioning; or water supply and sewage and waste management. 12 Apart from the ECA, there are incentive schemes that NEA has introduced to encourage businesses to make energy efficient choices from the design phase of the facilities to operational phase, such as the Design for Efficiency Scheme (DfE), the Energy Efficiency Improvement Assistance Scheme (EASe) and the Grant for Energy Efficient Technologies (GREET). 13 For more information on each of these schemes, visit: http://app2.nea.gov.sg/grants-awards/energy-efficiency 2 In comparison, the average annual electricity consumption for a typical 4-room HDB household is about 4.550 MWh of electricity (Source: From SP Services Website, March 2012 to February 2013). 54 TJ is equivalent to the energy consumption of about 3,300 4-room HDB households. 3
Annex A Potential Annual Energy Savings per Households for: a) Air-conditioners: Switching from a 3-tick to a 4-tick 6 kw multi-split airconditioner would save a household that uses air-conditioners 8 hours every day up to $480. b) Refrigerators: Switching from a 3-tick to a 4-tick 400L refrigerator is about $40. c) Televisions: Switching from a low to medium or high efficiency TV is estimated to be between $11 and $17. d) Clothes Dryers: Switching from a 2-tick to a 3-tick 6 kg clothes dryer is about $36. e) General Lighting: Switching from a 60W incandescent lamp to a 12W CFL is about $13 per 1,000 hours of usage. 4
Annex B Proportion of Energy Efficient Air-Conditioners and Refrigerators Purchased 5
Progress of the MELS and MEPS Schemes Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme (MELS) Current Air-conditioners (Introduced in 2008) Refrigerators (Introduced in 2008) Clothes dryers (Introduced in 2009) Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) Air-conditioners (Introduced in 2011) Refrigerators (Introduced in 2011) MEPS for air-conditioners and refrigerators were raised in Sep 2013 Upcoming Extending MELS to televisions (2014) 3 Revised energy label; providing more information to help consumers make better informed purchasing decisions (2014) 4 Extending MEPS to general lighting (2014) 5 Extending MEPS to clothes dryers (2014) 6 3 This was announced at COS debate in 2013. 4 This was announced at COS debate in 2013. 5 This was announced at COS debate in 2012. 6 This was announced at COS debate in 2013. 6