Brussels, 10 September 2012 - EPEE/EHPA welcome the results of the exceptional stakeholder consultation, organised last Thursday by the European Commission’s DG Energy. It was greatly appreciated that Energy Commissioner Mr. Oettinger took the time to hear all stakeholders and to create the necessary transparency in this dossier. The outcome of the meeting made it clear that the majority of the stakeholders is in favour of maintaining the current proposal, establishing a single, technologically-neutral energy label for heaters.

The current proposal for an energy label for heaters is a result of the inter service consultation in the European Commission and a hard won compromise taking into account all aspects of the heating technologies on the market today. It suggests setting up one single energy label scheme for all heat generators placed on the EU market.

EPEE and EHPA believe such a single energy label to be the way to go if the EU wants to achieve its energy savings targets. “The single energy label will provide transparency, and by consequence, support the consumers in choosing the most appropriate solution to heat their homes. It will also create an incentive mechanism for the uptake of the most energy efficient heating systems, including renewable energy technologies, and will enable a clear differentiation between products on the EU market.” – says jointly Thomas Nowak, Secretary general of EHPA and Andrea Voigt, EPEE’s Director General.

Together with the future Ecodesign implementing measure on heaters (ENER Lot 1), the energy label for heaters has the potential to contribute to substantial energy and CO2 savings, as well as significant energy bills savings for EU citizens.1 With the uptake of renewable technologies, such as heat pumps, the energy label will also contribute in maintaining and creating jobs and manufacturing in Europe.

It is also the first measure to complement the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) towards the EU 2020 energy savings target. In fact the combined regulations on Ecodesign and Energy Labelling of heaters are expected to bring 2 percentage points in energy savings to the 17% expected from the EED.

Consequently, EPEE/EHPA are looking forward to the Commissions’ agreement expected next month, before it is sent to the European Parliament and the Council for scrutiny. If no objection rose, the text will then be published in the EU Official Journal which will lead to the appearance of labelled products on the market.

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1- “With Best Technology (BAT) the energy efficiency improvement can be over 60%. Carbon and nitrogen oxides emission reductions per unit are in the same order of magnitude.” Preparatory Study on Eco-Design of Boilers – Executive Summary (September 2007) link

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Notes to the Editor:

About EHPA: EHPA was established in the year 2000 to promote awareness and proper deployment of heat pump technology in the European market place for residential, commercial and industrial applications. EHPA today has 91 members representing the majority of actors in the European Heat Pump Industry.

The association aims to provide technical and economic input to European, national and local authorities in legislative, regulatory and energy efficiency matters. All activities are aimed at overcoming market barriers and dissemination of information in order to speed up market development of heat pumps for heating, cooling and hot water production. It is the declared aim of the association to make heat pumps a core technology in the development towards a more energy efficient, RES based, sustainable energy system. For more information: www.ehpa.org

About EPEE: The European Partnership for Energy and the Environment (EPEE) represents the refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pump industry in Europe. Founded in the year 2000, EPEE’s membership is composed of 40 member companies and national associations across Europe realising a turnover of over 30 billion Euros and employing more than 200,000 people in Europe.

As an expert association, EPEE is supporting safe, environmentally and economically viable technologies with the objective of promoting a better understanding of the sector in the EU and contributing to the development of effective European policies. For more information: www.epeeglobal.org