Kingdom game for new era of energy-savings

Manama

Do you know that much of the electricity used is wasted because of faulty practices and our choice of gadgets?  The Kingdom of Bahrain will usher in a new era of energy-savings on September 6. 

The new regulation regarding home lights will cut the electrical energy consumption for lighting purposes to less than 10 per cent of the total electrical energy consumption from the present figure of 17pc -18pc, a target aimed to be achieved within a few years, Ali Ashoor Abdullatif, the Head of electricity consumption, Electricity and Water Authority, EWA, said.

The regulation requires the current importers of lighting equipment to adhere to certain parameters that ensures quality and energy-saving aspects for the benefit of the common man, he added.  All imports of lamps will have to precede with registration with EWA.

Muna Al Alawi, Head of Standards implementation and quality assurance said that even though the energy-saving bulb (Light Emitting Diode, LED) is expensive, it has 25 to 50 times the lifespan of the normal incandescent lights.  Also, LED bulbs produce just 20pc heat whereas the incandescent lights generate 90pc heat and 10pc light.

The Kingdom will be following similar regulations implemented in other countries, including in European Union, in phasing out incandescent lights, Abdullatif added. The specification includes efficiency requirements, information requirements in the packaging, operational requirements as well safety requirements.

The specification has been published in official gazette in March and it will be enforced soon. Last six months were used for preparation for this regulatory implementation, he added. However, the existing stocks of lamps will not be affected by this regulation. The department of Standardization and Metrology urged all traders to register their products with Electricity and Water Authority to get ‘no objection permit’ to import products.

Head of electricity conservation, EWA was speaking to DT News on the sidelines of a press conference organised by the ministry of Industry and Commerce along with EWA regarding ‘Energy Efficient Lighting Programme.’

The press conference was attended by Muna Al Alawi, Ali Al Hayk, Head of Metrology, Ali Mirza, Head of Operations and Ali Ashoor Abdullatif.