PURPOSE: to recast Regulation 2422/2001/EC on laying down the rules for implementing the Energy Star programme for office equipment.

LEGISLATIVE ACT: Regulation (EC) N° 106/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Community energy-efficiency labelling programme for office equipment (recast version).

CONTENT: t he objective of this Regulation is to recast, and thus clarify, existing Community provisions concerning an energy-efficiency labelling programme for office equipment. The new Regulation replaces and repeals Regulation (EC) 2422/2001 and will contribute to making Community legislation more accessible and transparent. The Regulation establishes the rules for the Community energy-efficiency labelling programme for office equipment (the Energy Star programme) as defined in the Agreement of 20 December 2006 between the United States of America and the European Community on the coordination of energy-efficiency labelling programmes for office equipment.

The Regulation points out that office equipment accounts for a significant share of total electricity consumption. The various models available on the Community market have very different levels of energy consumption for similar functionalities and there is significant potential for optimising their energy efficiency. Improving the energy efficiency of office equipment should contribute to improving the competitiveness of the Community and the security of its energy supply and to protecting the environment and consumers.

The Energy Star energy-efficiency label is used worldwide. In order to influence the requirements of the Energy Star labelling programme, the Community will participate in the programme and in drawing up the necessary technical specifications. When setting those technical specifications together with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the Commission must aim at ambitious levels of energy efficiency, in view of the Community's policy of energy efficiency and its energy-efficiency targets.

The General Principles set out in the Regulation are as follows:

the Energy Star programme shall be coordinated, as appropriate, with other Community labelling or quality certification arrangements as well as with schemes such as, in particular, the Community eco-label award scheme, established by Regulation (EEC) N° 880/92, the indication by labelling and standard product information of the consumption of energy and other resources by household appliances, established by Directive 92/75/EEC and measures implementing Directive 2005/32/EC; the Common Logo may be used by programme participants on their individual office equipment products and on associated promotional material; participation in the Energy Star programme shall be on a voluntary basis; office equipment products for which use of the Common Logo has been granted by USEPA shall be deemed to comply with this Regulation, unless there is evidence to the contrary; without prejudice to any Community rules on conformity assessment and conformity marking and/or to any international agreement concluded between the Community and third countries as regards access to the Community market, products covered by this Regulation which are placed on the Community market may be tested by the Commission or Member States in order to verify their compliance with the requirements of this Regulation.

Other existing and new voluntary energy-efficiency labelling schemes for office equipment products in Member States may co-exist with the Energy Star programme. The Commission and the Member States shall act in order to ensure the necessary coordination between the Energy Star programme and national labelling schemes and other labelling schemes in the Community or in the Member States.

Review: one year before the expiry of the Agreement, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and the Council a report monitoring the energy efficiency of the office equipment market in the Community and evaluating the effectiveness of the Energy Star programme. The report shall include qualitative as well as quantitative data and also data on the benefits derived from the Energy Star programme, namely energy savings and environmental benefits in terms of carbon dioxide emission reductions.

ENTRY INTO FORCE: 04/02/2008.

Regulation 2008/106
OJ L 039 13.02.2008, p. 0001

03646/2007/LEX

SP(2007)4170

Results of vote in Parliament

The European Parliament adopted the report by Nikolaos VAKALIS (EPP-ED, EL) amending the Commission proposal for a regulation on a Community energy-efficiency labelling programme for office equipment. The Parliament endorsed the amendments tabled by the committee responsible. (Please refer to the summary dated 07/06/2007).

T6-0303/2007

A6-0234/2007

A6-0234/2007

The Committee on Industry, Research and Energy adopted unanimously the report by Nikolaos VAKALIS (EPP-ED, EL) amending – at first reading of the codecision procedure – the Commission proposal for a regulation on a Community energy-efficiency labelling programme for office equipment. The main amendments are as follows:

stipulate that apart from the overall energy and environmental benefit, the consumer has a strong motive to choose energy efficient office equipment, also because of the important financial benefit resulting from the reduction of energy consumption the consumer has to pay for; tune the Energy Star programme to energy efficiency policies and targets set by the EU; notify Member States of the participants of the Programme with a view to keeping the Member States updated and aware; encourage the public sector to set the example in attaining the energy efficiency targets of the EU. The committee believes that public procurement is the best framework for promoting advanced products, especially energy consuming products, not only by setting the example to the consumer but also by giving a decisive boost to the market demand for energy efficient products; the Commission, assisted by the EC Energy Star Board, shall follow market penetration of products bearing the Common Logo and development of energy efficiency of office equipment with a view of a timely revision of the technical specifications; before giving its views on new specifications, the ECESB shall take into account the latest results of the eco-design studies; ensure the promotion of Energy Star labelled productions in educational and promotional initiatives; the Commission shall, one year before expiry of the Agreement, produce and submit to the European Parliament and the Council a report monitoring the energy efficiency of the office equipment market in the Community and giving an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Energy Star programme. The report shall include qualitative as well as quantitative data. The report shall also include data on the benefits derived from the Energy Star programme, namely energy savings and environmental benefits in terms of carbon dioxide emission reductions.

PE386.528

CES0428/2007

2765

PURPOSE: to recast Regulation 2422/2001/EC on laying down the rules for implementing the Energy Star programme for office equipment.

PROPOSED ACT: Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council.

CONTENT: the purpose of this proposal is to recast Regulation 2422/2001/EC on laying down the rules for implementing the Energy Star programme for office equipment and to adopt implementation of the Energy Star programme to a new Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Community on the co-ordination of energy-efficiency labelling programmes for office equipment. For a summary of Regulation 2422/2001/EC (see COD/2000/0033).

The Agreement provides for the continued use of the Energy Star programme in the Community for a second five year period. A proposal for a Council Decision on signature and the conclusion of the new Energy Star Agreement is being submitted to the Council in parallel to this proposal. Both the recast Regulation and the Agreement take account of experience gained during the first period of implementation of the Energy Star programme in the Community, (2001–2006) as well as consultations which took place on the EU Energy Star Board. The primary objective is not only to improve implementation of the Energy Star programme it is also to make it more effective and to reap potential energy savings.

The main reasons for renewing the Agreement, in summary, are:

- Efficient use of energy is one of the main pillars for a sustainable energy policy in the EU. Energy savings secure the competitiveness of the EU due to lower energy spending, offers environmental protection through a reduction of carbon emissions, helps secure the EU energy supply and reduces the EU’s dependence on energy imports.

- Office equipment accounts for a significant share of the EU electricity consumption.

- The EU Energy Star programme provides a framework for co-ordinating the Member States’ national efforts.

- Global partners should be involved in the global trade of office equipment.

- The voluntary Energy Star programme is widely accepted by manufacturers – especially so in the USA where it is important for public procurement matters.

- Voluntary labelling schemes can be highly flexible and allow for swift adoption at times of technological progress.

- The programme offers market transparency.

The first Agreement with the United States expired in June 2006. The proposal for a new Agreement includes the explicit requirement that the common technical specifications must be of the highest standard. Accordingly, Annex C contains demanding and innovative common technical specifications for monitors and imaging equipment (copiers, printers, scanners, faxes) covering both standby and on-mode energy consumption. Estimates suggest that the new common technical specifications for imaging equipment, which were endorsed by the Energy Star Board, will save 17 TWh in the EU-25 over the next three years.

As well as recasting Regulation 2422/2001/EC the Commission is proposing some changes to the Regulation in a bid to simplify procedures. On the matter of recasting the Regulation, the proposed changes seek to reduce the implementation costs for both the Community institutions and for the Member States, in accordance with the voluntary nature of the programme.

Concretely speaking the Commission is proposing changes to:

Article 6: Promotion of the logo: The Commission proposes abolishing the requirement that Member States and the Commission promote the logo. This is because the Energy Star Programme is a voluntary labelling scheme for manufacturer and they must therefore be responsible for its promotion. The Commission will continue to provide lists of participating manufacturers and registered products plus an internet portal which includes a database of registered products and information.

Article 8: European Community Energy Star Board (ECESB): The Commission is proposing to abolish the requirement that the ECESB prepare a report on the market penetration of Energy Star products. Instead the Commission proposes to launch a tender for a market survey on office equipment to support future upgrades of the energy-efficiency criteria. In addition, it is being proposed that the requirement that the Commission keep the European Parliament and Council informed of the Board’s activities be abolished, given that all of the information can be sourced on the Energy Star internet portal.

Article 10: Working Plan : The Article has been reworded in order to bring it into line with the current implementation stage of the programme and to make it consistent with the proposed amendment to Article 6 and 8.

Article 11: Preparatory procedures for the revision of technical criteria: This change states that the Commission and the ECESB may make changes to the Agreement when it comes to technical specifications. The ECESB’s obligation to revise technical specifications is also being reduced in view of its limited resources.

Article 13: Implementation: This Article is being repealed given that the Member States have no reporting duties.

Article 14: Revision: This Article has been reworded to lighten the burden of programme implementation on the Commission and to make it consistent with the voluntary nature of the Energy Star scheme.

Annex: The annex depicting the logo has been deleted since the Energy Star logo is already mentioned in the Agreement. Further, any changes to the design of the logo belong to the US Environmental Protection Agency and should, as a result, not be the subject of an EU co-decision procedure.

Recast: This proposal recasts Regulation 2422/2001 in line with the Inter-institutional Agreement on the recasting technique for legal acts. This means that it incorporates in a single text both the substantive amendments to the Regulation and the unchanged provision thereof. This proposal will replace and repeal Regulation 2422/2001.

COM(2006)0576
EUR-Lex

PURPOSE: to recast Regulation 2422/2001/EC on laying down the rules for implementing the Energy Star programme for office equipment.

PROPOSED ACT: Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council.

CONTENT: the purpose of this proposal is to recast Regulation 2422/2001/EC on laying down the rules for implementing the Energy Star programme for office equipment and to adopt implementation of the Energy Star programme to a new Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Community on the co-ordination of energy-efficiency labelling programmes for office equipment. For a summary of Regulation 2422/2001/EC (see COD/2000/0033).

The Agreement provides for the continued use of the Energy Star programme in the Community for a second five year period. A proposal for a Council Decision on signature and the conclusion of the new Energy Star Agreement is being submitted to the Council in parallel to this proposal. Both the recast Regulation and the Agreement take account of experience gained during the first period of implementation of the Energy Star programme in the Community, (2001–2006) as well as consultations which took place on the EU Energy Star Board. The primary objective is not only to improve implementation of the Energy Star programme it is also to make it more effective and to reap potential energy savings.

The main reasons for renewing the Agreement, in summary, are:

- Efficient use of energy is one of the main pillars for a sustainable energy policy in the EU. Energy savings secure the competitiveness of the EU due to lower energy spending, offers environmental protection through a reduction of carbon emissions, helps secure the EU energy supply and reduces the EU’s dependence on energy imports.

- Office equipment accounts for a significant share of the EU electricity consumption.

- The EU Energy Star programme provides a framework for co-ordinating the Member States’ national efforts.

- Global partners should be involved in the global trade of office equipment.

- The voluntary Energy Star programme is widely accepted by manufacturers – especially so in the USA where it is important for public procurement matters.

- Voluntary labelling schemes can be highly flexible and allow for swift adoption at times of technological progress.

- The programme offers market transparency.

The first Agreement with the United States expired in June 2006. The proposal for a new Agreement includes the explicit requirement that the common technical specifications must be of the highest standard. Accordingly, Annex C contains demanding and innovative common technical specifications for monitors and imaging equipment (copiers, printers, scanners, faxes) covering both standby and on-mode energy consumption. Estimates suggest that the new common technical specifications for imaging equipment, which were endorsed by the Energy Star Board, will save 17 TWh in the EU-25 over the next three years.

As well as recasting Regulation 2422/2001/EC the Commission is proposing some changes to the Regulation in a bid to simplify procedures. On the matter of recasting the Regulation, the proposed changes seek to reduce the implementation costs for both the Community institutions and for the Member States, in accordance with the voluntary nature of the programme.

Concretely speaking the Commission is proposing changes to:

Article 6: Promotion of the logo: The Commission proposes abolishing the requirement that Member States and the Commission promote the logo. This is because the Energy Star Programme is a voluntary labelling scheme for manufacturer and they must therefore be responsible for its promotion. The Commission will continue to provide lists of participating manufacturers and registered products plus an internet portal which includes a database of registered products and information.

Article 8: European Community Energy Star Board (ECESB): The Commission is proposing to abolish the requirement that the ECESB prepare a report on the market penetration of Energy Star products. Instead the Commission proposes to launch a tender for a market survey on office equipment to support future upgrades of the energy-efficiency criteria. In addition, it is being proposed that the requirement that the Commission keep the European Parliament and Council informed of the Board’s activities be abolished, given that all of the information can be sourced on the Energy Star internet portal.

Article 10: Working Plan : The Article has been reworded in order to bring it into line with the current implementation stage of the programme and to make it consistent with the proposed amendment to Article 6 and 8.

Article 11: Preparatory procedures for the revision of technical criteria: This change states that the Commission and the ECESB may make changes to the Agreement when it comes to technical specifications. The ECESB’s obligation to revise technical specifications is also being reduced in view of its limited resources.

Article 13: Implementation: This Article is being repealed given that the Member States have no reporting duties.

Article 14: Revision: This Article has been reworded to lighten the burden of programme implementation on the Commission and to make it consistent with the voluntary nature of the Energy Star scheme.

Annex: The annex depicting the logo has been deleted since the Energy Star logo is already mentioned in the Agreement. Further, any changes to the design of the logo belong to the US Environmental Protection Agency and should, as a result, not be the subject of an EU co-decision procedure.

Recast: This proposal recasts Regulation 2422/2001 in line with the Inter-institutional Agreement on the recasting technique for legal acts. This means that it incorporates in a single text both the substantive amendments to the Regulation and the unchanged provision thereof. This proposal will replace and repeal Regulation 2422/2001.

COM(2006)0576
EUR-Lex