EU Lighting Needs Time to Go Eco-Friendly - Philips
Date: 04-Apr-07
Country: BELGIUM
Author: Huw Jones
The decision to order a huge switchover that will affect the lives of all the bloc's 490 million citizens came at a summit of EU leaders last month, with the aim to fight climate change and cut energy consumption by a fifth by 2020.
Rudy Provoost, chief executive of Philips Consumer Electronics, said industry backed plans to cut energy use but an end-of-decade deadline for the lightbulb switchover was too aggressive.
"You always have to make sure timing, pacing and sequence of things reflect economic reality. To move from incandescent lighting everywhere to new forms of energy-efficient lighting will probably take 10 years," Provoost told Reuters.
Incandescent lamps are traditional lightbulbs that use a filament. They are inefficient compared with new fluorescent lights and other alternatives.
The leaders asked the executive European Commission to come up with proposals for saving power in office and street lighting by 2008 and in homes by 2009.
Provoost likened this to the switchover from analogue to digital television, which will take until 2012 to complete.
"Companies should set the stage and the pace. I hope the policymakers will feel that as endorsement and as support and keep working closely with us," said Provoost, who is also president of Brussels-based technology industry lobby EICTA.
"We would support an aggressive timetable in Europe, but you need to find a balance between feasibility and responsibility. I would start with ten years and count back from there and see if you can do it faster and better," he added.
Sales at Philips' lighting division topped 5.47 billion euros (US$7.3 billion) in 2006, making it the world's top bulb maker, ahead of rivals such as Siemens-owned Osram and GE.
Australia has said it will be the first country to ban incandescent lightbulbs, announcing it will phase them out within three years.
The electronics industry has other ways to cut energy use.
By the end of 2008, gadgets left on standby all day every day will consume just a euro of electricity in a year, Provoost said.
