An assessment of energy benefits of efficient household air-conditioners in Brazil

Increasing efficiency of electrical equipment is essential to national energy rationality, enabling energy consumption reduction and postponing inversion in distribution, transmission and generation, as well as mitigating environmental impacts associated with such activities. Considering such purposes, two actions have been promoted in Brazil: (a) minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) have been required for some appliances and (b) consumers have been informed about the most efficient products by "endorsement labeling." The purpose of this study is to assess window and split air-conditioners with Brazilian MEPS. To evaluate the impact of efficient air-conditioners in this market, a model was developed based on estimates for quantity of equipment in operation and unitary consumption, as determined by local temperature records. From this model, it was deduced that using only efficient conditioners (class A for Brazilian Labeling Program/INMETRO, with PROCEL Label) an annual saving of 322 GWh and a reduction in demand of 109 MW could be obtained in 2007. Furthermore, it was observed that the current MEPS established by Brazilian legislation for air-conditioners may be considered relatively low. Considering that MEPS are similar to those observed in China (the main exporter of air-conditioners to the Brazil), an energy saving of roughly 222 GWh could be achieved in the same year. Impacts on emission of greenhouse gases are also estimated.