After 26 years of service, the energy label is being retired. From 1 March 2021 it will change its appearance across the entire European Union. The design will reflect a new rating scale for the energy efficiency performance of many electrical and electronic devices, such as refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines, televisions and lamps.

Introduced in the European Union in 1995, the labelling system currently uses the classification system that includes the letters A+++, A++, A+, A, B, C and D. A system that has become increasingly widespread: about two thirds of refrigerators and washing machines sold in 2006, the European Commission reports, were labelled class A, while over 90 per cent of those sold in 2017 were labelled A+, A++ or A+++. Yet it generates confusion among consumers, who have difficulty choosing products that require less energy. The attempt to update the previous classification by using + signs ultimately did not help in the purchase of lower-energy devices, hence the need to revise the energy labelling method.

What changes with the new energy label

The energy consumption scale for household appliances will show letters from A to G on the left side of the label. There will be just one A, without any +, it will be green and will indicate the most energy-efficient class. The letter G, in red, will indicate a device with high energy consumption. Each letter will correspond to a precise amount of energy consumed, that is, an energy consumption class. The central section of the label will show the overall value, which will vary depending on the product group: it will be expressed in kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, kWh per 1,000 hours or kWh per 100 cycles. In addition, and this is a very important aspect, greater emphasis will also be placed on the environmental impact of products, such as noise emitted or typical water consumption.

Energy class available after rescaling based on technological development in 2020

Electronic device	Current label	New label
Refrigerators and freezers	A+++	B/C
Wine storage refrigerators	A+++	B/C
Washing machines, from 4 kg upwards	A+++	B/C
Dishwashers	A+++	B/C
TVs and displays	A+++	B/C
Light sources	A++	C/D

Which household appliances and devices it will be mandatory for

The new energy label will be mandatory for the following list of appliances, considered capable of having a direct or indirect impact on the consumption of energy and other potential primary resources:

• air conditioners;
• cooking appliances (domestic);
• dishwashers (for domestic use);
• boilers (for space heating and water heating);
• lamps (rescaled from 1 September 2021);
• local space heating appliances;
• refrigeration appliances (for domestic use);
• refrigerators (professional);
• solid fuel boilers;
• televisions;
• tumble dryers;
• tyres;
• ventilation units (residential);
• washing machines (for domestic use).

From 1 March, the rollout will begin with five product groups: washing machines and washer-dryers, freezers and refrigerators, dishwashers, televisions and displays, and lighting. The new label will gradually be extended to air conditioners, tumble dryers, vacuum cleaners and water heaters. For light sources, the rollout will begin on 1 September 2021 with a final deadline of 28 February 2023. For tyres, the obligation comes into force from 1 May 2021.

What "rescaled label" means

It may happen that you purchase a product that still carries the old label for several more months, since retailers are not obliged to change it on products stored in warehouses, or that you encounter both labels at once. In this case it will be easier to identify the rescaled product, a technical term indicating the recalculation or rescaling of the energy efficiency class.

It will be noted that the criteria adopted are stricter, because they reflect higher energy efficiency standards compared to the previous classification. Some products may appear to have been downgraded: a refrigerator currently in class A+++ could move to class C, or, to give another example, the energy consumption of washing machines will be calculated over 100 wash cycles rather than on the basis of annual use. For televisions, the energy requirements of the internal components, and not just the screen, will also be a determining factor.

The highest categories will be left empty

The highest categories will be left empty in order to incentivise manufacturers to be more competitive and to invest in the design of more efficient products so as to accelerate technological innovation. Indeed, from 1 March 2024 products in class G and certain class F categories will no longer be permitted for sale.

This measure reflects the stricter stance of the European Commission, which in September 2020 proposed raising the greenhouse gas emissions reduction target for 2030 to at least 55 per cent compared to 1990 levels. To achieve this and keep the focus on the European Green Deal, the executive proposed an improvement of at least 32.5 per cent in energy efficiency. No small commitment, with strategic targets set for the next nine years, which promises to stimulate a climate-neutral economy and to honour the commitments made under the Paris Agreement.

By 30 November 2021 all appliances will be required to adopt the new energy label, which must be clearly visible and legible on appliances displayed in online and physical points of sale, whether large household appliance chains or small local retailers. Many parties will need to comply: manufacturers based in Europe; authorised representatives of a manufacturer not established in Europe; and importers. In addition to the label, these businesses will be required to provide free of charge technical documentation describing the behaviour and energy performance of the product. Non-commercial information that will be accessible to the buyer via a QR code shown in the top right-hand corner of the label.

In the lower part of the label there will be what are known as pictograms, that is, icons showing specific characteristics of the product. For the most part, familiar pictograms already used previously will be employed. There will also be new ones, for example the energy efficiency icon in HDR mode for TVs and displays, and the washing time for washing machines.

The Eprel platform

From 1 January 2019, manufacturers, importers and authorised representatives will be required to register all this information in the European Product Registry for Energy Labelling, Eprel, before placing products on the European market. The portal is divided into two sections: one aimed exclusively at businesses and consumers (from July 2020), to provide them with further information; and another for market surveillance authorities to monitor the application of the specific legislation.

The European Union makes some very useful tools available to those who need to create and print the labels: a label generator available online and templates in InDesign format.

The regulatory steps

The final format and appearance were approved on 11 March 2019 by the European Commission for six product groups: dishwashers; washing machines and washer-dryers; refrigerators, including wine storage refrigerators; lamps; electronic displays, including televisions, monitors and digital signage panels; and commercial refrigerators in shops and with a direct-sale function (a category that until now had no energy label).

This decision supplemented what had been established by the other EU bodies: on 4 July 2017, the European Parliament and Council approved Regulation 1,369, which sets out a framework and repeals the previous directive, 2010/30/EU. The European Court of Auditors, the body responsible for overseeing the European Union's financial management, in special report 01/2020, issued a warning about the timing of these steps. It highlighted how regulatory delays risked reducing the contribution of the new labelling in terms of energy efficiency, and how "the impact of the policy under review risks being overestimated".

The Label 2020 and Belt communication campaigns

To support consumers, retailers, manufacturers and policymakers during this period of transition, the Austrian Energy Agency is promoting the Label 2020 communication campaign across 16 member states. From June 2019 until January 2023, it will stimulate national programmes, initiatives and information materials. Label 2020 is funded by the largest research and innovation programme ever implemented in the EU and run by the European executive, Horizon 2020. Internal estimates by the European Commission project that the new labelling will deliver total final energy savings of 38 terawatt-hours (TWh) per year by 2030, equivalent to Hungary's annual electricity consumption.

This communication campaign is complemented by the European project Boost energy label take up, Belt, also funded through Horizon 2020 funds and coordinated by the Italian company Altroconsmo Edizioni Srl, to facilitate the transition to rescaled labels, inform and train all key stakeholders, and help consumers choose products with better energy performance.

New label for eco-compatible products

In parallel, the European Commission is promoting the legislation on ecodesign and eco-compatible design. It aims to establish, among other things, minimum requirements on the energy consumption of devices in stand-by mode, and on the dismantling and recycling of end-of-life products. These measures should lead to additional energy savings of 94 TWh per year by 2030, more than the annual electricity consumption of Belgium and Luxembourg combined. This is fully in line with the principles of the circular economy, which calls for the moderate use of resources – energy above all – combined with sustainable design.