What's New?

Special Notices

August 2011: The timeframe for stakeholder comment on the Consultation Regulatory Impact Statement: Review of Minimum Energy Performance Standards for Distribution Transformers: May 2011 has been extended. Comments now close COB Friday, 2 September 2011.
July 2011: Comment on the Street Light Strategy - Draft Strategy Paper is sought from stakeholders. Comments close COB Friday, 23 September 2011.
June 2011: Important notice concerning details of amendments to AS/NZS4474.1 & AS/NZS4474.2 which affects all Household Refrigerator and Freezer Registrations on the Energy Rating website.
December 2010: Important notice concerning details of the redevelopment of the energyrating website, including how you can assist by providing input or by testing the design and build of the new website.
November 2010: Important notice that affects all users of the on-line Energy Rating registration database. From 1 April 2011 a new system to manage the currency of public listings of products on the Energy Rating database will apply.

A full list of previous E3 special notices is available.

What has recently changed on energyrating?

Key recent changes to energyrating are listed below:

Details for the upcoming E3 Standby Power and Battery Charger Forum to be held in Melbourne, Wednesday, 14 September 2011. Please register your interest by going to www.energyrating.gov.au/standbybatteryforum2011 and filling in your details prior to 9th of September 2011.
Edition 9 of Loaddown Newsletter - July 2011 is now available for download (see international standby page for previous editions).
Presentations from the National Workshop on Energy Efficient Street Lighting are now available.
Announcement and invitation for upcoming E3 Whitegoods Forum to be held in Melbourne, Monday, 24 October 2011. Please register your interest by going to www.energyrating.gov.au/whitegoodsforum2011 and filling in your details by Friday, 30th of September 2011. A detailed program for the day will be forwarded to each registrant in early October 2011.
Details for the upcoming E3 Compliance Conference to be held in Sydney, Monday, 17 October 2011. Please register your interest by going to www.energyrating.gov.au/complianceforum2011 and filling in your details by Friday, 16th of September 2011. See the Agenda for further details.
Presentations from the E3 Home Entertainment Energy Efficiency Forum - 2011 are now available.
Retrospective Review of the Equipment Energy Efficiency Program: Lessons Learnt From Two Reviews is now available for download.
Achievements 2009/10 the Equipment Energy Efficiency Program's (E3) annual report is now available for download.
Refrigerator Energy Labelling and MEPS Compliance in the Australian Market is now available for download.
Performance Verified is now available for download.
Survey of Energy Efficiency Labelling of Televisions - A Report on Inspections of 101 Retail Television Outlets in Australia is now available for download from the electronic library.
Edition 3 of The Efficiency Standard - Autumn 2011 Newsletter is now available for download.
Announcement and agenda for upcoming E3 Home Entertainment Energy Efficiency Forum to be held in Sydney, 19 April 2011.
Agenda and Presentations from E3 LED Stakeholder Consultation Workshop held 29 November 2010 in Canberra are now available for download.
Edition 8 of Loaddown Newsletter - January 2011 is now available for download (see international standby page for previous editions).
Product Profile: Ducted Gas Heaters is now available for download from the electronic library.
Survey of Energy Efficiency Labelling of Air Conditioners: A Report on Inspections of 321 Retail Air-Conditioner Outlets in Australia is now available for download from the electronic library.
Edition 2 of The Efficiency Standard - Summer 2010 Newsletter is now available for download.
APEC Standby Power Conference 2010 - Moving Towards One Watt and Beyond was held 19-21 October 2010 in Tokyo, Japan. Presentations and full conference reports are now available for download.
Decision Regulatory Impact Statement: Minimum Energy Performance Standards for Air Conditioners: 2011 is now available for download from the electronic library.
Evaluation of Energy Efficiency Policy Measures for Household Refrigeration in Australia: An Assessment of Energy Savings Since 1986 and
Evaluation of Energy Efficiency Policy Measures for Household Air Conditioners in Australia are now available for download from the electronic library.
Updated (November 2010) Voluntary Swimming Pool Pump Labelling Information is now available.

Regular Updates

Media releases and news
Events
Latest publications: A full index of reports and technical papers released in 2010 is available. A full listing of all reports can be found in the electronic library.
A summary of current Australian Standards that are in force to regulate energy efficiency, regulatory expiry dates and the changes that are pending or under development within E₃ can be found on product standard updates (includes draft standards).
Regulatory rulings are updated from time to time - these can affect which products are covered by energy efficiency regulations and should be reviewed by manufacturers.
A summary of supplementary data for Australian Standards (such as test materials and sources and accredited laboratories).
An overview of products being considered for regulation or other energy programs including introduction of regulations for new products or review, revision or upgrading of existing requirements (this is updated regularly).

Media Releases and News

2010

LG Australia provides ACCC with undertaking over energy efficiency claims

LG Australia has provided the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission with a court enforceable undertaking after concerns that LG may have breached the Trade Practices Act 1974 by misrepresenting the Comparative Energy Consumption (CEC) of various refrigerator models.

Over the course of 2007 and 2009, LG applied for energy label registrations for three refrigerator models, all of which included an energy saving feature which switches the refrigerator to a more energy efficient mode of operation, storage mode, when it is left for a sustained period without opening the refrigerator door.

LG did not remove or disable the storage mode during testing prior to applying for the energy label registrations. These initial tests indicated a CEC of 738kWh/year. Subsequent tests conducted by LG showed a CEC of 820kWh/year when storage mode is disabled.

The ACCC conducted an investigation as to whether LG Australia's marketing of the various models with a CEC of 738kWh/year gave rise to concerns under the Act. In particular, the ACCC was concerned that:
- LG may have represented that the CEC of the various models was 738kWh/year when it was not
- LG may have represented that the CEC of the various models was significantly lower that it was
- LG may have misled the public as to the energy efficient characteristics of the various models, and
- LG's compliance program did not pick up and/or prevent the conduct from occurring.
"The cost of electricity is paramount to all consumers in Australia such that energy efficiency claims can significantly influence consumer purchasing decisions," ACCC chairman Graeme Samuel said today. "To ensure companies cannot take advantage of this, the ACCC will thoroughly investigate claims that have the potential to be false or misleading. Companies need to have in place measures to ensure their claims are accurate."

In March 2010, LG Australia announced that it would offer all consumers who bought one of the refrigerator models compensation. As part of the undertaking, LG will keep this compensation offer open until at least November 2010.

In addition, LG has undertaken to establish and implement an upgraded trade practices law compliance program, and conduct additional testing on a selection of refrigerators, televisions, clothes washers, clothes dryers and dishwashers prior to release into the Australian market.
ACCC media release 16 September 2010.
Details of the undertaking

2009

Energy Efficient Appliances and Lighting: Helping Aussies Live Greener and Smarter. Environment Minister Peter Garrett announced new performance standards and energy labels for televisions; the extension of the 10-star energy rating scale for super efficient fridges, freezers and air conditions; and the next steps in the phase-out of inefficient household lighting. Media Release 1 November 2009.

2008

Celebrating World Environment Day, Environment Minister Peter Garrett today announced three new initiatives to help householders save energy and money while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Media Release 5 June 2008.
The energy efficiency of electrical and gas appliances will be improved over the next four years under a $14.0 million Rudd Labor Government scheme to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Minister for the Environment Peter Garrett said today. Media Release 13 May 2008.

A full list of previous Media Releases and News is available.

An full index of reports released in 2010 is available for review. Indexes for 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003 and 2002 are also available. A full listing of all reports can be found in the electronic library.

This page last modified 26 August 2011