Call to delay phase-out of domestic halogen lamps

04 Dec 2014

LightingEurope association urges delaying proposed ban; also, all lamp sales value is set to peak by 2018, then fall.

Being switched off? Domestic halogen eco lamps after 2018.

If current proposals by the European Commission are adopted, consumers will no longer be able to purchase any domestic halogen eco lamps after 2018, warns industry association Lighting Europe.

The pressure group has published a position paper, which says it is concerned by the impact a ban would have on consumers, and it is urging the EC to delay the prohibition until at least 2020, to allow replacement products to become available for consumers.

Diederik de Stoppelaar, the group's Secretary General, commented, “To put it simply, a phase-out starting before 2020 is going to be confusing, costly, and inconvenient to European Union consumers. The industry strongly supports — and has for years — the changeover to more energy efficient lighting solutions.

"However, a 2018 date does not allow for alternative developing technologies to be widely available — and it is the consumers who will lose out. The best solution for consumers is for Commission to adopt a phase out date of 2020 or later, which will allow for the widespread availability of new technologies and ample choices. On behalf of our members, LightingEurope has always taken a clear position on this issue and provided the written position to back it up.”

LightingEurope is an industry association of 33 European lighting manufacturers, national associations, and companies producing materials. LightingEurope members represent over 1,000 European companies, a majority of which are SMEs; a total workforce of over 100,000 people in Europe; and an annual turnover estimated to exceed €20 billion.

LED lamp sales ‘to peak in 2018’

In related news, market analyst Strategies Unlimited has released its annual market research report, The Worldwide Market for Lamps, which covers the market for A, reflector, MR16, and tube lamps. This report foresees the overall market for these lamps peaking in 2018 at $21.2 billion from $17.9 billion today. By 2022, the market is expected to fall back to $16.0 billion.

Sales value of lamps - including LED types - will peak in 2018, says analyst.

The short term growth and following fall is due to the increased penetration of LED lamps into all applications. LED lamp revenues are expected to more than double from $7 Billion in 2014 to almost $15 Billion in 2019.

Strategies Unlimited’s Research Director, Philip Smallwood said, “While all LED lamp markets are forecasted to have a positive CAGR from 2014 through 2022, most will peak before the end of the decade as socket saturation from these long-lived products will decrease the overall global replacement lamp market.”

The Worldwide Market for Lamps covers all technologies, including incandescent, halogen CFL, fluorescent, and LED types, the last of which explains how LED lamps are poised to change the lighting landscape. Government regulations are the factor that is having the largest impact on the lamp market today. The phasing out or banning of incandescent lamps is pushing the general population to actually make a choice about the technology that they use to illuminate their world.

Smallwood concludes, “The most important theme in this report is that companies must adapt to a changing landscape to survive. While the market for LED lamps is poised to see growth, the market for all other technologies is expected to have a –14% CAGR in the same time period. While there might be a short-term gain for more efficient incumbent technologies, mainly CFL and halogen, in the long term, LED will eventually be crowned king.

About the Author

Matthew Peach is a contributing editor to optics.org.