Communication: Market assessment on mains-voltage lamps as required by Regulation (EU) No 1194/2012

Commission Regulation (EU) No 1194/2012 contains minimum energy efficiency requirements for directional lamps, light emitting diode lamps and related equipment. These ecodesign requirements are introduced in stages, with each stage adding new or more stringent requirements compared to the previous stage. The last one, stage 3, is due to apply from 1 September 2016 and will require a minimum energy efficiency of 0.95 for filament lamps, 0.36 for high-intensity discharge lamps and 0.2 for all other lamps, expressed using an energy efficiency index (EEI). Directional mains-voltage halogen lamps currently on the market do not meet the requirement for filament lamps, and stage 3 will therefore prohibit their placing on the market.

To ensure that these halogen lamps are not phased out without an adequate replacement option, Regulation 1194/2012 states that stage 3 will apply to mains-voltage filament lamps only if no later than 30 September 2015, evidence is produced by the Commission through a detailed market assessment and communicated to the Ecodesign Consultation Forum that there are mains-voltage lamps on the market that are:
- compliant with the maximum EEI requirement in stage 3;
- affordable in terms of not entailing excessive costs for the majority of end-users;
- broadly equivalent in terms of consumer-relevant functionality parameters to mains-voltage filament lamps available on the date of entry into force of this Regulation [3 January 2013], including in terms of luminous fluxes spanning the full range of reference luminous fluxes listed in Table 6 [of Regulation 1194/2012, ranging from 90lm to 1000lm];
- compatible with equipment designed for installation between the mains and filament lamps available on the date of entry into force of this Regulation according to state-of-the-art requirements for compatibility.

This Communication fulfils the legally required market assessment of the available mains-voltage replacement lamp options on the market. It is based on a technical market overview produced for the Commission by external technical consultants and presented to the Ecodesign Consultation Forum.

ESO: Background information: EU delays ban on halogen bulbs http://www.europeansources.info/record/eu-delays-ban-on-halogen-bulbs/

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