Government inspectors will start checking stores starting Sunday to ensure they are stocking energy efficient refrigerators and freezers.

Dealers had until Thursday this past week to comply with new regulations issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

This is part of the government’s efforts to reduce energy consumption in the country. There have recently been regulations passed on air conditioners, household appliances and cars.

Inspections would be carried out by the ministry, Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization, Saudi Customs and the Saudi Center for Energy Efficiency. The ministry has warned that there are heavy penalties for those failing to comply.

Last week, the ministry advised all companies selling home appliances to notify the ministry if they have refrigerators and deep freezers violating energy efficiency regulations.

The dealers were given until Thursday to submit a list of such stock. Failure to do so would see them prosecuted under the Anti-Commercial Fraud Law. A ministry official said the aim is to reduce energy consumption in the country.

Earlier, the ministry called on merchants, manufacturers and importers of refrigerators and freezers to ensure they conform to standards as published in the government’s official gazette last year.

He said that the ministry had given dealers an opportunity to declare such goods and to export them to their countries of origin.

The Kingdom plans to save a fifth of its energy use by 2030 through its efficiency drive designed to prevent domestic consumption from eating up oil for exports.

Energy consumption is 4.2 million barrels of oil per day currently and is expected to rise to more than 8 million by 2030. The energy efficiency drive is expected to save about 20 percent of that projected consumption, or roughly 1.5 million barrels per day, Arab News reported earlier this year.

Truong Duy