Refrigerators & Freezers

Due to technical progress and energy efficiency policy schemes implemented in most regions, the specific electricity consumption per volume of cold appliances has decreased during recent years. These schemes include mandatory Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) in many countries. Some countries, including the USA and Australia, have already reduced specific electricity consumption per volume by up to 80%. Surprisingly, the purchase price of cold appliances meeting the MEPS has also decreased in these countries, after correction for inflation. Much more can be achieved because the MEPS do not yet reflect the best technically and economically feasible performance. Cold appliances with much better efficiency are available (see pdf file ‚What users can save with energy-efficient refrigerators and freezers’). Energy savings of 20 to 60 % are possible, compared to the most popular conventional appliances. Also, the most efficient appliances worldwide are not yet available in all markets. Appropriate policies can close this efficiency gap. Policy should also support research and development for even more efficient appliances (BNAT). This can be done both by direct financial support and demand-pull strategies, such as technology procurement and super-efficient appliance award competitions. Read more in the bigEE Policy Guide.

Currently about 1,4 billion domestic cold appliances are in use worldwide, using about 650 TWh of electricity and causing Greenhouse gas emissions of 450 Million tons of CO₂eq a year. Total energy consumption by cold appliances is still on the increase. However, the most energy-efficient technology domestic cold appliances could reverse this trend despite growing ownership: Compared to 2008, in the order of 360 TWh/yr of electricity could be saved, leading to Greenhouse gas emission reductions of 220 million tons per year, by 2030. See the associated PDF on the potential by world region.

Design options exist which would allow further reductions in specific energy consumption compared to the current Best Available Technology (BAT) worldwide. Additional savings in specific energy consumption of about 50 % vs. BAT can be expected, depending on appliance types. These options include improved insulation, more efficient compressors, evaporators, condenser and heat exchanger optimisation and optimised electronic control. However, more research and development is necessary to bring appliances to the market with such technology (BNAT: Best Not (yet) Available Technology). Read more in the pdf file ‚Technical background and design options to raise cold appliance efficiency and to reduce their environmental impact’.

Consumers can save a lot of energy by choosing energy-efficient refrigerators and freezers whenever they purchase one. They therefore need to be able to compare the annual energy consumption of different models of similar size and function. Test procedures to measure energy consumption and efficiency are therefore crucial for markets and policies to work well. We have collected and compared the test procedures and standard definitions for energy efficiency used in major economies (see pdf file ‚Test procedures, measurements and standards for refrigerators and freezers’).