Fozia Azam

The government’s initiative of banning the conventional fans is expected to boost the manufacture of international standard energy-efficient fans which will pave way for enhancing exports. Director Strategy Management Office National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (NEECA) Sabeih Haideri expressed these views while talking to WealthPK. “By binding the local manufacturers to produce energy-efficient fans as per international standards, we will be able to save electricity. This initiative will also boost fan exports to the international market,” he added.

As per NEECA, the production and purchase of traditional fans will stop from July this year in order to save electricity under the energy conservation plan. NEECA has been tasked with ensuring the production of low energy-consuming fans requiring 40 to 60 watts.Presently, 21 manufacturers with a total of 37 models have qualified for 3-Star Pakistan Energy Labels.

Talking to WealthPK, Sales Officer at the Pak Fans Sohail Saeed said, “Our company has been producing energy efficient fans for the last two years. The resurgence of load-shedding [power cuts] has also underlined the need for manufacture of energy-efficient inverter fans.” “Currently, the energy-efficient fans constitute a small portion of the total national production but their production is gradually increasing. The government’s plan to ban the production of high electricity consuming fans has also contributed towards boosting the production of energy-efficient fans.”

Sohail further said, “Initially, the production of energy-efficient invertor fans was slow but now it has paced up, as they are more in demand compared with the conventional fans.”Explaining the procedure for NEECA certification, he said the applicants (fan manufacturers) need to send their samples to the accredited laboratory. The lab tests the product in accordance with the set standards and submits a report to the NEECA which gives rating on the basis of the report.

“The higher the number of stars, the better the quality and energy efficiency of the fan. The three-star energy efficiency rating is the highest industry standard,” he added. Pak fans produces 3-star NEECA certified fans between 50 to 65 watts whereas the conventional fans use over 75 watts. The price of a 65-watt energy-efficient fan is Rs9,000 while the conventional fan is sold at Rs8,700.

“At present, Pak Fans manufactures 60 percent conventional and 40 percent inverter technology and solar fans. We are not sure what will happen to the current stock of conventional fans in the market and the manufacturers once the ban gets implemented,” he added. Replying to a query, he said the NEECA-certified energy efficient fans were more in demand. “We may start exporting such energy efficient fans in future but currently we are exporting both conventional and solar fans,” he added. It is pertinent to mention that the gap between the power supply and demand is around 5,000-5,500 megawatts. In view of the persistent energy crisis, the government has embarked upon the energy conservation plan and the manufacture of energy-efficient fans is part of the plan.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk