The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued heatwave warnings across multiple states, prompting demand for ACs and coolers, which is picking up after a slow start to summer in northern India. The rising temperatures are reflected in the market, with AC and cooler companies seeing their share prices rise after a volatile march.
The share price of Blue Star has nearly risen 20 per cent from its 30-day low, while Voltas has gained over 14 per cent, trading around ₹1,400 right now.
Closely resembling those of Voltas and Blue Star, LG’s share price has also reached ₹1,550. With renewed hope after a disappointing end to 2025 in sales, these companies are betting on a strong summer and predicting strong profits.
"The depreciation of INR and rising commodity prices will compel us to revise the prices upwards in Q4FY26," Blue Star CFO Nikhil Sohoni had said, back in the January investor call. Voltas MD Mukundan Menon, then in February, hinted that the company expects a 20 per cent growth in AC sales, as he unveiled the Voltas summer 2026 product portfolio.
But these gains don’t reach everyone. While this temperature rise helps companies like Voltas, Bluestar, and LG anticipate a profit hike, the impact of the heat leads to lower income and health risks for those without access to cooling. A study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that residents without access to cooling are four times more likely to develop heat-related illnesses. Heat stroke is concentrated among street vendors and other workers without access to cooling.
In India, access to air conditioning remains unequal, with a stark difference in socio-economic status between those who have it and those who do not.
According to the National Sample Survey, 8 per cent of Indians who own an AC are from high-income urban families, and the richest 10 per cent of households hold the majority of ACs. Rural AC ownership remains around 1 per cent, while more than 50 per cent of rural employment is in agriculture, which is highly exposed to heat.
Affordability is the barrier here, with premium AC prices and electricity costs pushing users into higher tariffs. To accommodate rising costs of copper, aluminium, and other energy-efficient initiatives, AC brands have increased prices by 5-15 per cent on top of existing premium prices, making it even harder for rural households to afford them. Electricity costs constitute the remaining problem.
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For a non-inverter 1.5-ton AC with a tariff of ₹8 per unit, the approximate bill would range from ₹2,800 to ₹3,000 a month. But the BEE (Bureau of Energy Efficiency) rating for ACs plays an important role in determining electricity costs.
A higher rating means greater energy efficiency, resulting in a smaller electricity bill. But an AC with a low 1-star rating starts at ₹10,000 and increases progressively with higher ratings, while the monthly average income per agricultural household is around ₹ 10,000, according to NSO data.
As heatwaves are increasing in frequency and duration, the ability to survive is shaped by income, turning it into both a business opportunity and a marker of inequality.