Delays to energy efficient goods will cost EU consumers 'billions' in lost savings

(The Guardian, 2 Oct 2018) New eco-designs for products such as TVs and fridges are also crucial to Europe meeting its climate targets, say experts.

New energy efficient eco-designs for 15 products including fridges, TVs and dishwashers have been delayed, EU diplomats say, even though experts consider them “crucial” to meeting Europe’s Paris climate pledge. The delays are also expected to mean consumers will miss out on lower energy bills.

The design revamps would have saved 62m tonnes of CO2 emissions – as much as Sweden’s annual primary energy consumption – but now look set to be dealt with by the next commission, in which far right parties may be more influential.

Only five energy labelling measures are on track to be approved by a 2 November deadline and at least half of the design overhauls are unlikely to be approved before the European parliament goes into recess in March.

“The measures are delayed and we are worried,” one EU diplomat told the Guardian, “We know that some of the products won’t make it but we really hope that we will have nine or 10 of them.”

Any hold-ups would impact on EU climate pledges, the official said, adding that a worst case scenario in which all 15 eco-designs were sent back to the drawing board “would not be acceptable” to his government.

This would involve a costly bureaucratic double take, with recalculations and technical specifications needed from EU officials, consultants and research centres after 2019.

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The Guardian, 2 Oct 2018: Delays to energy efficient goods will cost EU consumers 'billions' in lost savings