A Legislative Instrument (LI) banning the importation of second-hand refrigerators into the country will go into full operation by 2011. Though there has been a ban on imported second-hand refrigerators since 2008, the ban is not in full force. Alfred Ofosu Ahinkorah, Chief Executive Officer of the Energy Commission, who disclosed this recently in Accra, said the LI would allow his outfit to phase out the use of old and inefficient refrigerators from the system. A refrigerator considered old must have been in use for more than 10 years. Apart from the fact that second-hand refrigerators consume a lot of energy, they also contain an ozone-depleting gas known as Freon gas, which has been banned. Dr Ahinkorah stated that the Energy Commission was installing equipment to test imported refrigerators to ensure that they meet the standard tropical requirements. He added that another legislative instrument known as Energy Efficiency for Refrigerating Appliances, which was passed last year, will ensure that every refrigeration appliance imported into Ghana was labeled including its annual energy consumption record. Source: Business Guide/Ghana