The EU energy label is a system introduced by 1992 and it has been designed to provide accurate, recognizable and comparable information regarding energy consumption, performance and other essential characteristics of domestic household products.
It allows to identify how energy efficient a product really is and how to assess a product’s potential to reduce costs related to energy consumption.
Currently, the system is based on 10 energy efficiency classes ranging from A, divided into 4 efficiency levels, to G. Unfortunately, over the years it has become less clear: higher classes have become increasingly crowded while lower became empty, in order that the less efficient appliances were gradually banned from the market.
For these reasons, a new classification system is about to be introduced.
The new system will cover 9 products' categories
By September 2020, in all EU countries a new energy labelling system will be introduced. Starting in March 2021, it will progressively be rolled out to 9 product categories.
The new system will consist of 7 classes:
- Classes with the plus sign will disappear
- And the only classes from A to G will remain. Initially, class A
will be left empty, reserved to the more energy efficient products that will be produced in next years. - There will be no correspondence between old and new classes.
New labels will contain other useful information:
- Scales about energy consumption
- Other energy and non-energy visual information
- A new QR code, referring to additional, official informations (non-commercial) online
- Non-energy visual information
During this phase, old and new labels will both be available for all products.
From November 2020: each product including in the rescaling will have to be accompanied by the new label.
Public procurement personell will have to request the new energy labels in all public tenders
Business procurement personell will not to be able to participate in tenders using the old labels.
The new system will improve:
- rationalization of public expenditure
- more awareness for public buyers
- less environmental impact
- stimulus to innovation
- FOR MORE INFO
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Guidelines on the new energy labeling (3250 KB)
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 847043
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