By Angelica Y. Yang, Reporter
THE Philippine Energy Efficiency Alliance, Inc. (PE2) said it is pushing for the inclusion of gasoline and diesel-powered motor vehicles in the Department of Energy’s (DoE) energy labeling guidelines.
The DoE’s Philippine Energy Labeling Program (PELP) requires sellers to affix labels on TV sets, refrigerators, cooling products, and lighting products, detailing their respective energy-efficiency ratings, monthly energy consumption, and power input in watts, among others.
“We’re very glad that the PELP and its implementing guidelines are out… We need to see more products but that’s a good start. We’d like to see the day where motor vehicles become part of it, where motors — industrial and commercial — are also part of (PELP), and more and more appliances get covered,” PE2 President Alexander de Ramos Ablaza told BusinessWorld in a video call on June 9.
Mr. Ablaza specified the need for fuel consumption ratings, noting that vehicles need to be labeled accordingly, as is the practice in South Korea, Japan and the US.
According to a DoE circular issued in June 2020, additional energy-consuming products may fall under PELP›s coverage after public consultation with the environment and transportation departments.
Mr. Ablaza described the PELP›s initial list of products as among the “most energy-intensive.”
“Cooling and lighting are of the biggest loads of medium-sized businesses, (and) small and micro businesses, as well as residential and household sectors… I think the initial set of appliances covered by the PELP implementing guidelines would cover a huge portion of the final energy demand of these smaller sectors,” he said.
He said lack of action on energy-consumption standards puts the Philippines at risk of becoming a “dumping ground” for less efficient appliances.
The energy labeling rules allow consumers to assess a product’s efficiency ratings before making a purchase.