The GIZ Uganda Country Office has taken a significant step towards environmental sustainability by replacing old air conditioners (ACs) with eco-friendly “Blue Angel” ecolabel certified and highly efficient technology. 17 efficient ACs, with an A+++ energy efficiency rating, that use natural refrigerant (R290) have been successfully installed. They replaced old inefficient fixed speed AC units that utilised the synthetic refrigerants R22 or R410A, which are ozone depleting, climate harmful and pollutive refrigerants including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and Trifluoroacetic Acid impact.
Coordination and decommissioning of the activity
In a carefully coordinated decommissioning process, the outdated units were safely uninstalled, including a pump down of the R22 and R410A refrigerant by certified professionals. This approach aligns with environmental regulations, ensuring minimal harm to the planet. The change of ACs happened in cooperation with the GIZ project www.green-cooling-initiative.org that supported the procurement, organised the training, supervised the installation and in monitoring the energy and cost savings as well as the CO2 mitigation.
By opting for R290 ACs, GIZ Uganda is making a significant contribution to reducing its carbon footprint and actively supporting sustainable and green initiatives.
The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nuclear Safety and Consumer protection (BMUV) in the context of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). It aims to strengthen sustainable transformation efforts within the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning (RAC) sector, involving both public and private sector stakeholders. By opting for R290 ACs, GIZ Uganda is making a significant contribution to reducing its carbon footprint and actively supporting sustainable and green initiatives.
In addition, the GIZ office installed a 40 kW Photo Voltaic (PV) system on their premises to produce clean energy, which is supplying the ACs, the electric charging station for the GIZ electric car as well as other electricity demand for lights and computers of the country office. The remaining office’s energy demand is supplied by the grid which includes a large proportion of renewable sources.
GIZ’s internal sustainability strategy aims that by 2025 60 % of all ACs in GIZ country and project offices use the refrigerant R290 and are highly energy efficient. Apart from contributing towards this target, the project fully fulfilled the following GIZ sustainability indicators: climate mitigation and mobility, sustainable procurement, resource efficiency regarding energy efficiency and cost efficiency, as well as the use of sustainable consumables and equipment. Consequently, the GIZ country office in Uganda is nearly CO2 neutral. As a result, the project has been awarded by the GIZ Sustainability Award 2023.