Time for lights out

IN 1984, Brazil initiated a refrigerator-efficiency programme which included testing and labelling. Consequently, the average 1-door 250-litre model sold in 1986 used only 540 kwh that year. In 1989, the scale went down to a model that used only 336 kwh per year.

The electricity consumption of refrigerators in Brazil's domestic sector has been pinched blue by improved insulation, more efficient motor compressors, modified design of the refrigeration cycle, and reduced capacity of resistance heaters. The improvements made during 1987-89 have led to Brazilian refrigerators saving about 380 million kwh of electricity in 1989 alone, equivalent to a 100 MW plant's output. In 1990, the government and manufacturers agreed that by 1993 refrigerators in each category would consume no more energy than the most efficient model available in 1989. They also proposed efficiency improvements of 5 per cent a year from 1994 to 1998.