DUMAGUETE CITY – Hundreds of representatives of various business establishments here began attending a three-day consultation on the Philippine Energy Standards and Labeling Program, Tuesday.
The activity was organized by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Division, Energy Utilization Management Bureau of the Department of Energy (DOE), in cooperation with the local office of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
The consultation’s inputs would be used for the implementing guidelines and minimum energy performance for commercial, industrial and transport sectors, Antonio Labios, DOE-Central Visayas director, said in an interview Tuesday afternoon.
According to him, the DOE has a labeling program for appliances, such as refrigerators and air conditioning systems, so that consumers are given options in choosing the best appliance that would give them maximum energy efficiency or those that save on power usage.
The first day is basically public consultation to help the DOE formulate a department circular on the implementing rules and regulations of the labeling program, Labios explained.
Some appliances already have a label, usually using yellow paper, which gives the energy efficiency rating (EER) of each unit but the DOE targets that all appliances meet the requirement on labeling.
Labios said the responsibility of proper labeling rests on the manufacturer, the distributor, and the seller.
Participants in the consultation include representatives of local government units, dealers and owners of appliance stores, government agencies such as the DTI, a partner in the implementation of the program, and those from industrial and commercial establishments in Dumaguete.
For his part, Isagani Soriano, OIC-Division Chief of the Lighting and Appliance Testing Laboratory of the DOE, said the energy labeling program for appliances began in 1991 but covered only three-horsepower air conditioning units, excluding the inverter type.
However, there is a new test method compatible to international standards that may be used to test these inverter-type appliances.
Also covered by the energy labeling are LED lamps to protect consumers on the right products they would purchase, Soriano said.
He encouraged the public to go for appliances with energy labels as this means that they have already been tested and have passed government standards. (PNA)
