Govt AC temperature guidelines soon: To reduce peak power demand, air conditioning in 20-28°C to become norm
India will soon adopt new standards to cap air conditioner (AC) temperature settings between 20 and 28 degrees Celsius to reduce peak power demand, Union Power Minister Manohar Lal said on Tuesday. The proposed norms, being developed by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), will cover at least residential ACs and may also include commercial units.
'Air conditioner temperature standards will be introduced very soon for the first time. Under these standards, AC temperatures will be between 20-28 degrees Celsius. In other words, no cooling below 20 degree Celsius and no warming above 28 degree Celsius,' Manohar Lal said.
'Usually people do not sleep in temperatures below 20 degree Celsius. It has even been suggested to keep the minimum at 24 degree Celsius, however keeping people's preferences in mind, 20 degree Celsius will be followed,' he added.
Citing recent studies, Power Secretary Pankaj Agarwal said cooling demand accounts for around 50 gigawatt (GW), or roughly one-fifth of India's peak power demand. 'By increasing the temperature by 1 degree Celsius, we save 6 per cent of electricity. There are 10 crore ACs in India, with 1.5 crore being added each year. New induction (of ACs) is too huge,' he said.
#WATCH | Delhi: Union Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs, Manohar Lal Khattar says, 'Regarding air conditioning standards, a new provision is being implemented soon. The temperature standardization for ACs will be set between 20°C to 28°C, meaning we won't be able to cool below… pic.twitter.com/Iwnaa4ZPKN
— ANI (@ANI) June 10, 2025
Managing peak power demand during the summer months — when AC load surges — has become a major challenge for India's grid operators, especially during non-solar hours when baseload thermal plants struggle to ramp up. The problem is compounded by limited thermal capacity addition in recent years.
In 2024, peak demand of 250 GW was recorded on May 30. This year, favourable weather conditions kept power demand during the month of May in check. However, with temperatures rising in recent days, peak demand touched 242 GW on June 10.
A recent study by the University of California, Berkeley's India Energy & Climate Center found that without any policy intervention, room ACs could contribute a whopping 120 GW to India's peak demand by 2030. 'Even with all under-construction generation and storage projects online, power shortages are expected as early as 2026,' the working paper published in March 2025 said.
'India adds 10-15 million new ACs annually, with another 130-150 million expected over the next decade. Between 2019 and 2024 alone, room ACs added an estimated 30-35 GW to peak demand,' the paper said.
The study also found that setting strong minimum efficiency standards — especially for 1-star rated appliances — is key to ensuring the market doesn't flood with low-efficiency products, even as higher-tier labels improve.
Earlier, BEE has also advocated for setting the default AC temperature at 24 degree Celsius. 'Normal human body temperature is between 36-37 degree Celsius. It is generally observed that in large commercial establishments, such as hotels, AIRPORTS and offices, the AC operating staff try to set the lower temperature (around 18-21 degree Celsius), believing that it indicates a better cooling performance of AC system. However, technically this is not true and the cooling action of compressor is same at other settings also,' according to a document on BEE's website.
'On the other hand, setting the temperature in the range of 18-21 degree Celsius results into a very cool internal ambient conditions, which compels people to wear warm clothing leading to wastage of energy. As per the comfort chart, the temperatures upto 25 degree Celsius are quite comfortable for human body, along with desired humidity and air movement values,' the document said.
'Countries like Japan and the US have already put in regulations for the functioning of air conditioners. Japan introduced a default setting for air conditioners at 28 degrees Celsius. While in US, states like California have enforced limits on lowering the air conditioner beyond 26 degrees Celsius,' it added.
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