Installing Doors on Supermarket Refrigerators Cuts Summer Electricity Use by 63%

KEPCO Supports Refrigerator Door Installation Project with 5.9 Billion KRW Funding

Installing doors on open-type refrigerators in marts has been found to reduce power consumption by up to 63% during the summer. In response, the government has launched a campaign to promote the installation of doors on open refrigerators.

According to Lotte Mart, which has been implementing the "Refrigerator Door Installation Project" on open refrigerators since March 2021, power consumption decreased by an average of 52% after the project, with reductions reaching up to 63% in the summer.

Kang Kyung-sung, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, visited Lotte Mart's Zetaflex store on the 31st along with representatives from large marts, convenience stores, department stores, and small and medium distribution associations to observe energy savings from installing doors on open refrigerators. Vice Minister Kang stated, "Installing doors on refrigerators in food stores has a significant energy-saving effect, which will also help alleviate operating cost burdens caused by electricity rate increases," and urged the distribution industry to actively participate in the project after thoroughly reviewing consumer accessibility and sales impact.

Not only marts but also the convenience store industry is conducting pilot tests in some stores. BGF Retail reported that power consumption decreased by up to 64% in some test stores and plans to establish expansion measures in the future.

Accordingly, Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) plans to support approximately 5.9 billion KRW this year for the refrigerator door installation project in distribution companies. KEPCO estimates that installing doors on about 500,000 open refrigerators across approximately 110,000 stores nationwide could save about 2,270 GWh annually, equivalent to the annual power consumption of about 616,000 households nationwide. In particular, subsidies will be increased by 1.5 times for small and medium-sized enterprises and small business owners.

The government stated, "We will continue to discover and promote various energy efficiency support projects to reduce the industry's cost burden and continuously improve energy efficiency."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.