20 Jul 2011 10:07:06

Simple changes can 'cut refrigeration costs by 20%'

The Carbon Trust is calling on businesses to address the energy efficiency of their refrigeration systems.

According to the trust, simple low cost or free changes can slash refrigeration bills by up to 20 percent, and these are laid out within its new Refrigeration Systems guide.

Installing an efficient chiller, designed for use in UK temperature conditions with good part load capacity, could save businesses with a typical 800kW chiller as much as £25,000 a year, the guide states.

Open freezer doors can cost up to £6 an hour, while recovering heat from refrigeration systems can slash boiler energy consumption by up to 30 percent.

Businesses within the meat, poultry and fish processing industries or supermarkets can spend up to 50 percent of their energy bills on refrigeration, with this figure increasing to 70 percent for some small businesses.

The Carbon Trust also recently recertified some of the early adopters of its Carbon Trust Standard, including Diageo, BskyB, Royal Mail and O2.

CO₂ reductions were said to have saved the businesses £400,000 on average.