As India braces for an additional scorching summer season, a brand new examine highlights how bettering air conditioner (AC) effectivity might assist forestall extreme energy shortages and save customers as much as Rs 2.2 lakh crore (USD 26 billion) over the subsequent decade. The analysis, performed by the India Power and Local weather Centre (IECC) on the College of California, Berkeley, emphasises the pressing want for coverage intervention to handle the quickly rising vitality demand pushed by AC utilization.
In line with the examine, India presently provides 10-15 million new ACs yearly, with one other 130-150 million anticipated by 2035. With out regulatory motion, these cooling items alone might push peak energy demand to 120 GW by 2030 and 180 GW by 2035-accounting for almost 30% of the nation’s projected electrical energy consumption. This surge, researchers warn, might result in extreme energy shortages as early as 2026.
“This progress is outpacing India’s energy provide and will result in severe electrical energy shortages,” stated Nikit Abhyankar, the examine’s lead creator and a college member at UC Berkeley.
ACs have gotten one of many largest drivers of peak demand, and with out intervention, we threat blackouts or pricey emergency fixes. However with sensible coverage, we are able to flip this right into a win for customers, producers, and the grid.
The examine proposes updating India’s Minimal Power Efficiency Requirements (MEPS) to deal with the problem. A key suggestion is a 2027 revision that will increase the 1-star effectivity label to ISEER 5.0-equivalent to right now’s 5-star level-and introduce stricter requirements each three years. Such measures might assist keep away from 10 GW of energy shortages by 2028, 23 GW by 2030, and 60 GW by 2035-equivalent to the output of 120 giant energy vegetation.
Past stopping energy shortages, environment friendly ACs might ship substantial monetary advantages. Regardless of barely greater preliminary prices, they may result in web financial savings of ?66,000 crore to Rs 2.25 lakh crore (USD 8-26 billion) by 2035, successfully paying for themselves inside two to 3 years by means of decrease electrical energy payments.
“A standard concern with environment friendly ACs is that they is perhaps dearer,” stated examine co-author Amol Phadke, additionally a college member at UC Berkeley. “However our evaluation of worldwide markets, together with India, exhibits that effectivity shouldn’t be the primary issue driving retail costs.”
The findings stress that strengthening AC effectivity requirements is not only about long-term vitality financial savings – it is a direct answer to make sure grid reliability whereas retaining shopper prices in test.
