India is projected to see the world’s fastest-growing cooling demand and consequently, the air conditioning market in the next 5 years. Although India has one of the lowest penetrations of air conditioners across the world today (with only 8% Indian households), this is all set to change given the rising per capita income, rapid urbanization and increase in heatwave.
Within space cooling in Buildings, Room Air Conditioners (RAC) constitutes the dominant share. Currently the average efficiency level of room air conditioner stock in the Indian market is around 3.2 ISEER (Indian Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) which is way below the current 5-Star efficiency levels of 4.5 ISEER (or more) available in the Indian room air conditioner market.
| A family decides to buy AC when they feel their existing cooling system doesn’t provide thermal comfort which ranges for human between 24 to 26 degree Celsius. However, their key checklist while checking is to reduce existing electricity bills, fast & better cooling, less noise and the upfront cost of the unit. |
Although there are multiple brands, typology and technology available in the market, but how to choose best air-conditioner is considered to be an uphill task. There are various dependable brands like Daikin, O-General, Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Lloyd, Voltas, Carrier, Bluestar, LG, Samsung, Whirlpool etc. We have created a brand-wise comparison that will help in understanding the best efficient product. Initially, BEE star labeling was used to help consumers to choose the energy-efficient product. But, there is an additional parameter i.e. ISEER. It helps to rate total annual electricity consumption for 1600 annual hours and it is the ratio of total heat removed and total energy consumed. So, while making a purchase decision comparing ISEER values with higher values lead to provide an energy-efficient product.
| S. No. | Brand | Market Share | 0.75 TR (Highest ISEER) – Model | 1 TR (Highest ISEER)- Model | 1.5 TR (Highest ISEER) – Model | 2.0 TR (Highest ISEER) – Model |
| 1 | Hitachi (Japan) | 13%-14% | 6.1 (Hitachi-KASHIKOI 5100X++-RSOG512HCEAP)/5.75 (Hitachi-KASHIKOI 5400X-RSA512CBEA) | 5.2 – Hitachi-KASHIKOI 5100X+-RSOG518HCEAP | 4.7 – Hitachi-KASHIKOI 5400X-RMA524CBEA | |
| 2 | Carrier (USA) | 3%-4% | 5.42 Carrier-SUPERIA XTREME (5 Star)-CAI13SX5R30F0 | 5.2 – Carrier-SUPERIA XTREME (5 Star)-CAI19SX5R30F0 | 4.7 – Carrier-SUPERIA XTREME (5 Star)-CAI24SX5R30F0 | |
| 3 | Voltas (India) | 22%-23% | ||||
| 4 | Blue Star (India) | 12%-13% | 5.41 – Blue Star-YCTU | Inverter AC | 5 Star | 1.5 Ton-IC718YCTU | 4.65 – Blue Star-DBTU | Inverter AC | 5 Star | 2 Ton-IC524DBTU | ||
| 5 | Daikin (Japan) | 13%-14% | 5.8 (Daikin-FTKF35TV16U & Daikin-JTKJ35TV16U) | 5.33 – Daikin-FTKF50TV16U | 4.85 – Daikin-FTKF60TV16U | |
| 6 | Lloyd (India) | 13%-14% | ||||
| 7 | LG (South Korea) | 16%-17% | ||||
| 8 | Samsung (South Korea) | 8%-9% | ||||
| 9 | Whirlpool (USA) | 4%-5% | ||||
| 10 | Mitsubishi | 3%-4% | 5.41 (Mitsubishi-SRK10YL-S)
|
5.02 (Mitsubishi Electric-MSY-GR13VF-DA1) | 5 – Mitsubishi Electric-MSY-GR18VF-DA1 |
5 – Mitsubishi Electric-MSY-GR22VF-DA1
|
| 11 | O-General | 1%-2% | 5.12 (GENERAL-ASGG12CGTA) | 4.7 – GENERAL-ASGG24CGTA | ||
| 12 | Toshiba | 1%-2% | 4.9 (Toshiba-RAS-13U2KCVP-IN+RAS-13U2ACVP-IN) | 5.6 (Toshiba-RAS-18PKCV2G-IN+RAS-18PACV2G-IN) | ||
| 13 | Godrej | 3%-4% | 5.2 – Godrej-GIC 18 LAH 5 GWQG | 4.75 – Godrej-GIC 24 MGP5-WRA |
The list of top models is purely based on efficiency value i.e. ISEER from BEE (Bureau of Energy Efficiency) website (www.beestarlabel.com). Here, 55 and 63 brands are registered under fixed speed and variable speed category respectively.
The following calculation helps to understand the importance of ISSER for consumers and how they could save INR 2000 to INR 3000 per year with an informed choice. Let us understand the impact on its operating and capital expenses and calculating life cycle cost. Since, 1.5 TR sale of air-conditioning is maximum in Indian market.
- Estimated Cost of 5.2 (ISEER) AC = Rs. 47,000
- Estimated Cost of AC, 3.2 purchased by consumer = Rs. 38,000 ; Saving on Fixed Cost = Rs. 9,000
- Annual Power Consumption of (1600 hours in a year) = 650 kWh
- Annual Power Consumption of (1600 hours in a year) = 1050 kWh
- Annual Electricity Savings per Year (assuming Rs. 6 per unit) = 400 * 6 = INR 2400 per year.
So, simple payback period = 3.75 Years!!!
