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As living standards rise for tens of millions of Indian people, the enormous expansion in room and vehicle air conditioning could strain the country's electric grid, require increased fuel import, and magnify the impacts of global warming as a consequence of carbon dioxide and refrigerant greenhouse gas emissions. Choices made in the next few years will shape whether Indian consumers, companies and government authorities can turn the challenges of the room and vehicle air conditioning expansion into business advantage and national opportunity while reducing climate change, improving air quality, and making air conditioning more efficient and less costly to operate.

This paper explores the business case for Indian room air conditioning companies to "leapfrog" and phase down unsustainable technologies based on chemicals with high global warming potential (GWP) called hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and move to a future based on climate-friendly refrigerants and energy-efficient equipment designs.

last revised 6/21/2013