The analysis summarized in this report supports the ongoing work of India's Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) in its mandate to implement a standards and labeling (S&L) program for consumer electronics in India. US EPA actively supports the S&L program of the BEE. The analysis deals with establishing an efficiency threshold for an endorsement label. The purpose of endorsement labeling is to indicate clearly to the consumer that the labeled product saves energy compared to others on the market. The endorsement levels can be set on the basis of their relative place in the efficiency distribution. Typically, these levels are applied to the top tier (e.g., the top 15 to 25%) of energy-efficient products in a market. One example of an endorsement label for energy efficiency is the U.S. Energy Star® label. These levels can also be designed to target a specific efficiency level, as is mostly done with thresholds for standby power ratings.
Labeling aims to shift markets for energy-using products and appliances toward greater energy efficiency. Energy-labeling programs help consumers understand which products are most efficient and what the benefits of this efficiency are. Labels not only influence consumers to choose more efficient products but also create competition among manufacturers to produce and market the most energy-efficient models, which engages retailers in promoting efficiency.
The goal of this techno-economic analysis is to assess the net benefits that efficiency-based endorsement labels for consumer electronics can bring to India. The study focuses on color televisions as the first major product in a series of products within the consumer electronics product category in India. Color televisions form the biggest share of the consumer electronics market in India. With the increasing ownership of this product in the country, in addition to a growth in the product range, this product is an important target for efficiency improvement in India.
The analysis consists of two components:
This analysis relied on detailed and up-to-date market and technology data made available by ICF India. Technical parameters were used in conjunction with knowledge about television use patterns in the residential and commercial sectors, and prevailing marginal electricity prices, in order to give an estimate of per-unit financial impacts. In addition, the overall impact of the program was evaluated by combining unit savings with market forecasts in order to yield national impacts.
This study estimates potential efficiency savings from implementing an endorsement label for color televisions. Thus, the estimated benefits represent only part of the total that might be realized through a comprehensive program of efficiency improvement that follows the endorsement label with the setting of a minimum energy performance standard (MEPS) applied to all the consumer electronics products. The focus in the current task is to provide the most specific and technically accurate analysis for establishing efficiency levels for an endorsement label that would generate the maximum savings while creating the appropriate market pull for moving the baseline efficiency upwards.