Commission Regulation (EU) 2021/341 of 23 February 2021 amending Regulations (EU) 2019/424, (EU) 2019/1781, (EU) 2019/2019, (EU) 2019/2020, (EU) 2019/2021, (EU) 2019/2022, (EU) 2019/2023 and (EU) 2019/2024 with regard to ecodesign requirements for servers and data storage products, electric motors and variable speed drives, refrigerating appliances, light sources and separate control gears, electronic displays, household dishwashers, household washing machines and household washer-dryers and refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function (Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for energy-related products (1), and in particular Article 15 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Directive 2009/125/EC empowers the Commission to set ecodesign requirements for energy-related products.

(2) Provisions on the ecodesign of servers and data storage products, electric motors and variable speed drives, refrigerating appliances, light sources and separate control gears, electronic displays, household dishwashers, household washing machines and household washer-dryers, and refrigerating appliances with a direct sales function were established by Commission Regulations (EU) 2019/424 (2), (EU) 2019/1781 (3), (EU) 2019/2019 (4), (EU) 2019/2020 (5), (EU) 2019/2021 (6), (EU) 2019/2022 (7), (EU) 2019/2023 (8) and (EU) 2019/2024 (9) (thereafter the ‘amended Regulations’).

(3) In order to avoid confusion for manufacturers and national market surveillance authorities about the values to be included in technical documentation, and in relation to verification tolerances, a definition of declared values should be added in the amended Regulations.

(4) To improve the effectiveness and credibility of the product-specific Regulations and to protect consumers, products able to detect being tested and to automatically alter their performance in test conditions with the objective of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters specified in these Regulations or included in the technical documentation or included in any of the documentation provided should not be allowed to be placed on the market.

(5) The relevant product parameters should be measured or calculated using reliable, accurate and reproducible methods. Those methods should take into account recognised state-of-the-art measurement methods including, where available, harmonised standards adopted by the European standardisation bodies, as listed in Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10).

(6) Products containing light sources from which these light sources cannot be removed for verification without damaging one or more of them, should be tested as light sources for compliance assessment and verification.

(7) For electronic displays and for servers and data storage products, harmonised standards have not yet been developed, and relevant existing standards do not cover all necessary regulated parameters, notably as regards High Dynamic Range and Auto Brightness Control for electronic displays and the operating condition class for servers and data storage products. Until the adoption of harmonised standards by the European standardisation bodies for this product group, the transitional methods set out in this Regulation or other reliable, accurate and reproducible methods, which take into account the generally recognised state-of-the-art, should be used in order to ensure the comparability of measurements and calculations.

(8) Electronic displays for professional use such as video-editing, computer-aided design, graphics or for the broadcast sector, possess enhanced performance and very specific features that, although usually involving higher energy use, should not be subject to on-mode energy efficiency requirements set for more generic products. Industrial displays designed for use in harsh operating conditions for measuring, testing or process monitoring and control have specific and high requirements, such as those for minimum ingress protection (IP) level 65 as defined in EN 60529 and should not be subject to eco-design requirements set for products designed for use in commercial or domestic environments.

(9) Vertical static-air cabinets with non-transparent doors are professional refrigerating appliances and are defined in Commission Regulation (EU) 2015/1095 (11), and therefore should be excluded from Regulation (EU) 2019/2024.

(10) Further amendments should be made to improve clarity and consistency amongst the Regulations.

(11) The measures provided for in this Regulation were discussed by the Consultation Forum in accordance with Article 18 of Directive 2009/125/EC.

(12) Regulations (EU) 2019/424, (EU) 2019/1781, (EU) 2019/2019, (EU) 2019/2020, (EU) 2019/2021, (EU) 2019/2022, (EU) 2019/2023 and (EU) 2019/2024 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(13) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 19 of Directive 2009/125/EC,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/424

Regulation (EU) 2019/424 is amended as follows:

(1) paragraph 2 of Article 4 is replaced by the following: ‘2.   For the purposes of the conformity assessment pursuant to Article 8 of Directive 2009/125/EC, the technical documentation shall contain a copy of the product information provided in accordance with point 3.4 of Annex II and the details and results of the calculations set out in Annex III and, where applicable, Annex II.2 to this Regulation.’;

(2) Article 6 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 6 Circumvention The manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall not place on the market products designed to be able to detect they are being tested (for example by recognising the test conditions or test cycle) and to react specifically by automatically altering their performance during the test with the aim of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters in the technical documentation or included in any documentation provided.’;

(3) Annexes I, III and IV are amended and Annex IIIa is added as set out in Annex I to this Regulation.

Article 2

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/1781

Regulation (EU) 2019/1781 is amended as follows:

(4) Annexes I, II and III are amended as set out in Annex II to this Regulation.

Article 3

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/2019

Regulation (EU) 2019/2019 is amended as follows:

(2) Article 6 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 6 Circumvention and software updates The manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall not place on the market products designed to be able to detect they are being tested (for example by recognising the test conditions or test cycle) and to react specifically by automatically altering their performance during the test with the aim of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters in the technical documentation or included in any documentation provided. The energy consumption of the product and any of the other declared parameters shall not deteriorate after a software or firmware update when measured with the same test standard originally used for the declaration of conformity, except with explicit consent of the end-user prior to the update. No performance change shall occur as a result of rejecting the update. A software update shall never have the effect of changing the product's performance in a way that makes it non-compliant with the ecodesign requirements applicable for the declaration of conformity.’;

(3) the following Article 11 is added: ‘Article 11 Transitional compliance equivalence If no unit belonging to the same model or equivalent models was placed on the market before 1 November 2020, the units of models placed on the market between 1 November 2020 and 28 February 2021 which comply with the provisions of this regulation shall be considered compliant with the requirements of Commission Regulation (EC) No 643/2009.’;

(4) Annexes I to IV are amended as set out in Annex III to this Regulation.

Article 4

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/2020

Regulation (EU) 2019/2020 is amended as follows:

(2) in Article 4(1), the second subparagraph is replaced by the following: ‘Manufacturers, importers or authorised representatives of containing products shall ensure that light sources and separate control gears can be removed without being permanently damaged for verification purposes by market surveillance authorities. The technical documentation shall provide instructions on how to do this.’;

(3) Article 7 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 7 Circumvention and software updates The manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall not place on the market products designed to be able to detect they are being tested (for example, by recognising the test conditions or test cycle) and to react specifically by automatically altering their performance during the test with the aim of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters in the technical documentation or included in any documentation provided. The energy consumption of the product and any of the other declared parameters shall not deteriorate after a software or firmware update when measured with the same test standard originally used for the declaration of conformity, except with explicit consent of the end-user prior to the update. No performance change shall occur as a result of rejecting the update. A software update shall never have the effect of changing the product's performance in a way that makes it non-compliant with the ecodesign requirements applicable for the declaration of conformity.’;

(4) the following Article 12 is added: ‘Article 12 Transitional compliance equivalence If no unit belonging to the same model or equivalent models was placed on the market before 1 July 2021, the units of models placed on the market between 1 July 2021 and 31 August 2021 which comply with the provisions of this regulation shall be considered compliant with the requirements of Commission Regulations (EC) No 244/2009, (EC) No 245/2009 and (EU) No 1194/2012.’;

(5) Annexes I to IV are amended as set out in Annex IV to this Regulation.

Article 5

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/2021

Regulation (EU) 2019/2021 is amended as follows:

(3) in Article 4, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2.   For the purposes of conformity assessment pursuant to Article 8 of Directive 2009/125/EC, the technical documentation shall contain the reason why certain, if any, plastic parts are not marked as per the exemption set out in point D(2) of Annex II, and the details and results of the calculations set out in Annexes II and III to this Regulation.’;

(4) in Article 6, the second and third paragraphs are replaced by the following: ‘The energy consumption of the product and any of the other declared parameters shall not deteriorate after a software or firmware update when measured with the same test standard originally used for the declaration of conformity, except with explicit consent of the end-user prior to the update. No performance change shall occur as a result of rejecting the update. A software update shall never have the effect of changing the product's performance in a way that makes it non-compliant with the ecodesign requirements applicable for the declaration of conformity.’;

(5) the following Article 12 is added: ‘Article 12 Transitional compliance equivalence If no unit belonging to the same model or equivalent models was placed on the market before 1 November 2020, the units of models placed on the market between 1 November 2020 and 28 February 2021 which comply with the provisions of this regulation shall be considered compliant with the requirements of Regulation (EC) No 642/2009.’;

(6) Annexes I to IV are amended and Annex IIIa is added as set out in Annex V to this Regulation.

Article 6

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/2022

Regulation (EU) 2019/2022 is amended as follows:

(1) Article 6 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 6 Circumvention and software updates The manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall not place on the market products designed to be able to detect they are being tested (for example by recognising the test conditions or test cycle) and to react specifically by automatically altering their performance during the test with the aim of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters in the technical documentation or included in any documentation provided. The energy consumption of the product and any of the other declared parameters shall not deteriorate after a software or firmware update when measured with the same test standard originally used for the declaration of conformity, except with explicit consent of the end-user prior to the update. No performance change shall occur as a result of rejecting the update. A software update shall never have the effect of changing the product's performance in a way that makes it non-compliant with the ecodesign requirements applicable for the declaration of conformity.’;

(2) the following Article 13 is added: ‘Article 13 Transitional compliance equivalence If no unit belonging to the same model or equivalent models was placed on the market before 1 November 2020, the units of models placed on the market between 1 November 2020 and 28 February 2021 which comply with the provisions of this regulation shall be considered compliant with the requirements of Regulation (EU) No 1016/2010’;

(3) Annexes I, III and IV are amended as set out in Annex VI to this Regulation.

Article 7

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/2023

Regulation (EU) 2019/2023 is amended as follows:

(2) Article 6 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 6 Circumvention and software updates The manufacturer, importer or authorised representative shall not place on the market products designed to be able to detect they are being tested (for example by recognising the test conditions or test cycle) and to react specifically by automatically altering their performance during the test with the aim of reaching a more favourable level for any of the parameters in the technical documentation or included in any documentation provided. The energy consumption of the product and any of the other declared parameters shall not deteriorate after a software or firmware update when measured with the same test standard originally used for the declaration of conformity, except with explicit consent of the end-user prior to the update. No performance change shall occur as a result of rejecting the update. A software update shall never have the effect of changing the product's performance in a way that makes it non-compliant with the ecodesign requirements applicable for the declaration of conformity.’;

(3) the following Article 13 is added: ‘Article 13 Transitional compliance equivalence If no unit belonging to the same model or equivalent models was placed on the market before 1 November 2020, the units of models placed on the market between 1 November 2020 and 28 February 2021 which comply with the provisions of this regulation shall be considered compliant with the requirements of Regulation (EU) No 1015/2010.’;

(4) Annexes I, III, IV and VI are amended as set out in Annex VII to this Regulation.

Article 8

Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/2024

Regulation (EU) 2019/2024 is amended as follows:

(3) Annexes I, III and IV are amended as set out in Annex VIII to this Regulation.

Article 9

Entry into force and application

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 1 (3), Article 3(4), Article 5(6), Article 6(3), Article 7(4) and Article 8(3) shall apply from 1 May 2021. Article 2 and Article 4(4) shall apply from 1 July 2021. Article 4(1), (2) and (5) shall apply from 1 September 2021.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 23 February 2021.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 285, 31.10.2009, p. 10.

(2) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/424 of 15 March 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for servers and data storage products pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and amending Commission Regulation (EU) No 617/2013 (OJ L 74, 18.3.2019, p. 46).

(3) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/1781 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for electric motors and variable speed drives pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, amending Regulation (EC) No 641/2009 with regard to ecodesign requirements for glandless standalone circulators and glandless circulators integrated in products and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 640/2009 (OJ L 272, 25.10.2019, p. 74).

(4) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/2019 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for refrigerating appliances pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 643/2009 (OJ L 315, 5.12.2019, p. 187).

(5) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/2020 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for light sources and separate control gears pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Commission Regulations (EC) No 244/2009, (EC) No 245/2009 and (EU) No 1194/2012 (OJ L 315, 5.12.2019, p. 209).

(6) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/2021 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for electronic displays pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, amending Commission Regulation (EC) No 1275/2008 and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 642/2009 (OJ L 315, 5.12.2019, p. 241).

(7) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/2022 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for household dishwashers pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Commission Regulation (EC) No 1275/2008 and repealing Commission Regulation (EU) No 1016/2010 (OJ L 315, 5.12.2019, p. 267).

(8) Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/2023 of 1 October 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for household washing machines and household washer-dryers pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, amending Commission Regulation (EC) No 1275/2008 and repealing Commission Regulation (EU) No 1015/2010 (OJ L 315, 5.12.2019, p. 285).