The refrigeration systems in a supermarket account for between 30% and 60% of the electricity consumption, whereas lighting accounts for between 15% and 25%. In order to reduce the energy consumption and environmental impact of retail refrigeration systems, sector stakeholders (supermarket owners/ managers, technology providers, maintenance service providers and consultants) need to make some decisions. Some barriers have been identified that hinder the adoption of alternative energy efficient HFC-free refrigerants that are used in retail refrigeration systems. Therefore, a decision-making tree has been developed for supermarket managers/ owners to help them identify barriers and possible alternatives to overcome the barriers.

Successful case studies of supermarkets that have converted their refrigeration systems from synthetic refrigerants to a natural refrigerant CO₂ have been developed for Article 5 countries. These case studies include the VIC shopping facility, Brazil – Condor supermarket and Argentina – La Aninoma supermarket. While Austria is not an Article 5 country, the case study for the Vienna International Centre (VIC) serves as a benchmark and best-practice example with the aim to demonstrate potential pathways for others and especially Article 5 countries. The UNIDO supported the conversion of the Brazil and Argentina supermarkets. These case studies detail the decision-making process that led to the conversion, stakeholders involved, the barriers and how these were overcome. In addition, the case studies contain testimonials of the impact of the conversion on the energy consumption of their refrigeration systems and the retail refrigeration sector in their respective countries.

On the other hand, a case study has been developed for a supermarket in Uganda that has not embraced the alternative energy efficient HFC-free technology. The decision-making tool was applied to identify barriers and guide the supermarket manager on how these can be overcome.

The details of the different case studies can be found in the brochures attached below.

UNIDO/K-CEP/IIR Energy Efficient Retail Refrigeration - Decision-Making Tool is available below.