File picture used for representation only.
Close on the heels of a ban on the import and sale of conventional air conditioners, plans are afoot to introduce energy-efficient refrigerators and geysers in the local market, a senior official has said.
Qatar General Authority for Specifications and Standardization (QS) and Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa) are currently working on a plan to prepare specifications for refrigerators and geysers to increase their energy efficiency level, said Mohamad Al Mesaifiri, Head of ports, quality and conformity specialisation unit at QS.
GCC countries are working on a plan to prepare unified specifications for rationalisation of electricity and water for member countries in the next two years, said Al Mesaifiri in a Qatar TV talk show.
“The rationalisation drive started with air conditioners. Ban on conventional air conditioners in the local market came into force on December 31, 2016. So we could expect that Qatar will be free from those air conditioners within five years considering the life span and warranty period of the sold units,” said Al Mesaifiri.
During the warranty period spare parts and maintenance services for traditional ACs are required and therefore they will be accepted. They will be eliminated eventually as people prefer energy efficient products — windows and split units, he added.
“The energy efficient air conditioners that are also called star air conditioners are the costumers in many ways. They save electricity significantly compared to the traditional ACs. They are faster in cooling and heating and gave better performance,” said the official, adding that some air conditioners have a heater option.
ACs given stars for efficiency
The new air conditioners available in the local market are labelled from three to six stars as per the energy efficiency level. More stars mean more efficiency.
A proposal of QS to introduce seven and eight star air-conditioners in the market was approved by the Minister of Municipality and Environment H E Mohamed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi. This is called silver and golden label and it is optional for companies.
So far, 44 importers have registered 127 different brands of star air conditioners at QS. QS’s offices are present at all customs checkpoints - at the airport, seaport and border check post.
Violations of specification are very little and some of them could be corrected. Major violations that lead to sending back the consignment are very few, he added.
