According to Revue Pratique du Froid magazine, a new law was passed in France that will limit AC usage in existing buildings this summer. In order to reduce energy consumption, it will be forbidden to use air conditioning systems in buildings when the inside temperature is bellow 26ºC.

Article R. 131-29 of decree n.º 2007-363 (19^th March), published in the Official Journal of the French Republic on the 21^st March, will come into force on the 1^st of July. “Of course it would be impossible to check every household, so technicians who install this kind of equipment will be the ones setting a limit temperature of 26ºC”, declared Pierre Hérant, Director of the Environmental and Energy Management Agency (Ademe), to Europe 1. “There are other solutions for cooling one’s apartment, like good ventilation and solar protections to avoid heat coming in.”

Also, from January 2008 the new “thermal regulation for existing buildings” will require that professionals present a systematic study on the feasibility of energy supplies for all buildings over 1,000m2. From April 2008, contractors will have to improve the energy efficiency of buildings so long as the cost of renovation works is over 25% of the its value.