Green and High-efficient Refrigeration Action Plan was jointly released by National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Government Offices Administration on June 14 2019. The Action Plan aims to significantly improve energy efficiency level, expand the supply of green products. It plans to achieve the goal by improving policy measures and strengthening supervision and administration.
According to the Action Plan, by 2022, energy efficiency level of cooling products including residential ACs and VRF ACs shall be improved by 30%, and the market share of green high-efficiency cooling products shall be improved by 20%. By 2030, the cooling energy efficiency of large-scale public buildings shall be increased by 30%, the overall cooling energy efficiency level shall be improved by 25%, and the market share of green and high-efficiency cooling products shall be increased by more than 40%.
Standards for high-efficiency green cooling products will be substantially upgraded for the mandatory phase out of inefficient cooling products. The minimum energy efficiency standard for major cooling products shall reach or exceed the entry-level requirements of developed countries, while Grade 1 energy efficiency requirements shall reach world-leading level. Plus, the Action Plan is to accelerate the combination of standards for residential fixed-speed ACs and variable-speed ACs, revise the mandatory energy efficiency standards for products including VRF ACs, commercial freezers, refrigerated display cabinets, heat pumps, chillers, and heat pump water heaters. By 2022, the minimum energy efficiency requirement for residential ACs shall be improved by 30%, VRF ACs by 40%, refrigerated display cabinets by 20% and heat pump water heaters by 20%. By 2030, the minimum energy efficiency standard for major cooling products shall be further improved by 15%. The Action Plan says, the establishment of energy efficiency standards for cooling products such as data centers, mobile ACs, cold storage warehouses, refrigerated trucks, ice makers and dehumidifiers will be accelerated to phase out 20%-30% of low efficiency cooling products. Leading enterprises are encouraged to use enterprise standards that are stricter than national standards.
The Action Plan encourages enterprises to increase the supply of green high-end products such as variable speed products and products with precise temperature and humidity control, to step up the research and development of environmentally-friendly refrigerants, and to reuse and safely dispose refrigerants. Plus, it points out that, Regulation on Ozone-Depleting Substances Management and the Montreal Protocol shall be strictly implemented. Enterprises shall be guided to step up the transition to AC production lines that use low-GWP refrigerants, accelerate the phase out of HCFCs and control the use of HFCs.
The Action Plan strongly promote the consumption of high-efficiency green cooling products, including through government and enterprise green procurement.
It strictly cracks down on acts such as fraudulent product energy efficiency labeling, fraudulent certification and testing and false advertisement, and calls for strengthened compliance accountability in the cooling energy efficiency area, including through enforcement spot checks, and release of compliance information through the national credit information public disclosure platforms. Products falling short of the mandatory energy efficiency standards must be recalled by manufacturers within the prescribed time, and under serious circumstances, such manufacturers shall be ordered to suspend production for rectification. It calls for strengthened supervision of cooling-product recycling and disposal and regulated recycling, disassembling and reuse of waste cooling products.