The Ministry of Power, Government of India, set up the Bureau of Energy Efficiency or the BEE, under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001. The BEE was set up with the objective of making India’s energy usage and cost-efficient, ensuring that the products meet requisite energy efficiency standards and reducing the overall energy intensity of the economy of India. Scroll down to check more about BEE Registration for Room Air Conditioners.
What is Star Labelling Scheme?
The BEE brought for the star labelling scheme which aims to assess and improve the energy efficiency of the electrical appliances used in India. Under the star labelling scheme, there are certain products which require mandatory registration and products for which registration is voluntary.
The star rating is provided to electrical appliances based on its efficient usage of energy. A product rated with five stars has the highest energy efficiency and products rated with a star have the lowest energy efficiency. The star ratings help the end customers to assess the energy efficiency of the appliances and act as a guide in helping them decide the most cost-efficient appliance to buy.
Mandatory and Voluntary BEE Registration
Manufacturers of certain electrical appliances must get their appliances mandatorily registered under with the BEE, without which they cannot be marketed in the Indian market. The products which require mandatory registration are:
- Room Air Conditioners
- Direct Cool Refrigerators
- LED Lamps
- Tubular Florescent Lamp
- Distribution Transformer
- Electrical Geysers
- Frost Free Refrigerators
- Colour TV
- Variable Capacity Inverter Air Conditioner
There are certain products which are only required to obtain voluntary registration with the BEE. The products under the voluntary registration scheme are:
- Induction Motors
- Agricultural Pump Sets
- Deep Freezers
- Washing Machine
- Microwave Ovens
- Ceiling Fans
- Diesel Generators
- Solar Water Heaters
- Light Commercial Air Conditioner
- UHD Televisions
- Liquified Petroleum Gas Stoves for domestic use
- Solid State Inverter
- Computer
- Scanner, Copier, Printer, and various other office equipment
- Monoset Pumps, which are diesel-driven and used for agricultural purposes
- Chillers
A Brief on BEE Registration for Room Air Conditioners
Room air conditioners fall in the mandatory category for BEE registration which means that manufacturers of room air conditioners need to mandatorily obtain the BEE registration before deploying the products in the Indian market. BEE registration helps track and improve the energy efficiency of room air conditioners and to assess the progress made by manufacturers in this regard. The BEE Registration for room air conditioners is based on the standard IS 1391 Part 1, Part 2 (Schedule 3). The aforementioned standard is applicable to unitary and single-phase split air conditioners with vapour compression and a cooling capacity of 11 Kilowatts. Cooling systems which do not employ vapour compression like evaporative coolers and cooling systems with multiple indoor units, with each such unit having independent command, are not covered under the BEE scheme.
Since it is mandatory to obtain BEE registration for room air conditioners, manufacturers of such products must follow certain steps to obtain the requisite registration. However, before obtaining a BEE registration, the manufacturer of Indian origin needs to appoint an authorized signatory to carry out the BEE registration formalities. A foreign manufacturer must appoint an AIR or Authorized Indian Representative and a signatory. Such a foreign manufacturer can appoint an Indian business entity or a company official operating in India as its Authorized Indian Representative.
BEE Registration for room air Conditioners is a mix of online registrations, filing of documents and submitting original hard copies of the application and documents to the Bureau of Energy Efficiency. The process involved in the BEE Registration for room air conditioners is laid below:
- Registration of Company
To obtain a star label, the manufacturers or traders or importers of room air conditioners are required to register their company online with BEE on its official portal. The applicant is required to upload the documents on the portal along with the other required information and send the original hard copies of the documents to the office of the Bureau of Energy. The applicant is also required to submit a registration fee of Rupees Twenty-Five Thousand, if the applicant seeking registration is an MSME or Rupees One Lakh, if the applicant seeking registration is a large manufacturer.
The documents which required to be submitted during BEE Registration for Room Air Conditioners are:
- Certificate of incorporation or partnership deed, as applicable
- ISO 9001:2015 certification
- Authorization letter authorizing the signatory
- KYC documents of the authorized signatory
- Trademark certificate
- Details pertaining to authorized dealers
- Sample label of the product
- Requisite test reports as required by the norms brought out by BEE
- MSME certificate, if applicable
- Testing of the Product
Once the Bureau has assessed the documents submitted and approved the registration of the company, the applicant shall be granted login credentials for her account of the official BEE portal. Before filling in the application form for registration, the applicant has to get her product tested from a NABL or National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories approved laboratory or a lab approved by ILAC MRA or International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation Mutual Recognition Arrangement. For testing the product, the applicant must submit the requirements as prescribed by the lab along with the sample product. The test report must be in the format prescribed by BEE and must include all the required testing parameters. The applicant must ensure that the application for registration must be filed on the online portal within Ninety days of the receipt of the test report.
- Model Registration
After the applicant receives the testing report, the applicant must fill in the application form for registration within ninety days of receipt of the application on the official portal of BEE. Once the applicant has filled in the application and all the requisite documents have been uploaded, the applicant is required to furnish a fee of Rupees Two Thousand to the Bureau of Energy. The application, along with documents, shall be reviewed by the Bureau, and the applicant shall be given the opportunity to fill any lacuna, if any, in the application. Once the Bureau is satisfied with the sufficiency of the application and documents, the applicant shall be granted the license under BEE.
Once a product is registered under BEE, the manufacturer or trader or importer of such product shall affix the star label on it, which shall describe the energy consumption, ratio of energy efficiency, star rating, BEE registration number and product details.
The BEE Registration for Room Air Conditioners is valid for a period of 3 years from the date of issuance of such registration and must be renewed by paying a renewal fee if the product conforms to the new guidelines for star rating if any.
Conclusion
The Ministry of Power, Government of India, set up the Bureau of Energy Efficiency or the BEE under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001[1] to make India’s energy usage and cost-efficient, ensure that the products meet requisite energy efficiency standards and reduce the overall energy intensity of the economy of India. Under the star labelling scheme launched by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, room air conditioners are required to be mandatorily registered according to the norms prescribed by BEE. Since the star ratings help the end customers to assess the energy efficiency of the appliances and act as a guide in helping them decide the most cost-efficient appliance to buy, a manufacturer or trader or importer of room air conditioners willing to deploy such products in the Indian market must keep herself aware of the legal and regulatory compliances and the steps involved in getting a BEE Registration for Room Air Conditioners. Such manufacturers should aim to comply with the standards laid down by BEE and aim to achieve the highest stars possible under the star labelling scheme. This can also be used as a smart marketing tool to attract consumers and build trust and loyalty in the brand. Only after obtaining the requisite registration under BEE can a manufacturer or trader or importer freely manufacture, sell, import, or export or trade in any other in the Indian market.
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