All old and inefficient air conditioning units currently installed in homes and industrial establishments across the Kingdom will soon be replaced by much efficient units that are approved by the Saudi Arabian Standard Organization (SASO). The replacement of the old and inefficient units with more efficient air conditioning units is part of the long term energy conservation program of the government, according to Dr. Abdullah M. Al-Shehri, Governor of the Electricity & Co-Generation Regulatory Authority (ECRA). He revealed this when he addressed the ongoing First Renewable Energy Conference & Exhibition being held here at the King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM). He said local air conditioning units manufacturers are now being urged to produce more efficient units. Local manufacturers are willing to comply with the requirements in producing more efficient products and are seeking government protection against the importation of air conditioner, according to Shehri. Foreign-made air conditioning airs are being dumped in the local market, unduly competing with the locally-made brands. Industry sources said that local air conditioners manufacturers have to develop what the industry called as the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER), which is a measure of an air condition or heat pump's cooling energy efficiency developed by the United States Department of Energy. The higher the SEER in an air conditioning unit, the greater its efficiency and the lower its operating costs, industry sources said. Air conditioning units with low SEER inflates electric consumption and bills. This particular move to install more efficient air conditioning units is part of the demand-side management (DSM) program of the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC). Demand for electricity is increasing at the rate of 7 percent annually, according to SEC. To offset this increasing demand, SEC has already come out with energy efficiency program, which, SEC admitted, is not getting much success because of slow implementation and widespread lack of consumers' awareness of the national energy conservation measures. The implementation of the DMD and other conservation measures ensure long-term benefit for the Kingdom. ECRA said a direct benefit of SR.3 billion in the form of avoided energy and capacity costs will be achieved during the next decade. __
