Brussels, 6 December 2016: shecco together with Bas Eickhout, Member of the European Parliament, presented the report ‘F-Gas Regulation shaking up the HVAC&R industry’. Commissioned by the Greens in the European Parliament, the study provides qualitative and quantitative analysis of the early impacts of the EU F-Gas Regulation on the European industry and evaluates its influences on other countries and regions in designing their own policies to curb HFCs.

Klara Skacanova, lead author and Deputy Manager of Market Development at shecco, presented the report at the European Parliament on December 6. “This report shows how legislation can have a clear positive impact on the market, with an impressive growth of natural refrigerant solutions after the entry into force of the EU F-Gas Regulation”, said Skacanova. “At shecco we are particularly proud to work in cooperation with the European Parliament for this research piece” she added.

The report investigated how the F-Gas Regulation has affected a number of aspects, such as commercial availability of HFC-free equipment, shift in R&D investments, cost of equipment and training & awareness. The findings also indicate that the industry is transitioning to natural refrigerants much faster in the sectors where the Regulation has introduced ambitious sector-specific bans on HFCs.

The legislation has helped create new green jobs in the industry, with an increased number of companies emerging in Southern Europe. The Regulation has given a strong boost to innovation in technologies for warmer climates, with a number of companies introducing HFC-free solutions that have proven to work efficiently in temperatures of up to 45°C.

At an international level, the work that the EU has done domestically serves as a great example of what could possibly be done on a global scale to reduce HFC emissions and thereby avoid 0.5°C of global warming by 2100.

Full report is available online here.

Background

To control emissions from fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases), including hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), the European Union has adopted two legislative covering all other key applications in which F-gases are used.

The EU F-Gas Regulation applies from 1 January 2015. The Regulation strengthens previous restrictions to the use of fluorinated gases in different sectors and introduces a number of far-reaching changes.

About shecco               

For the past 15 years shecco has been helping to bring climate friendly technologies faster to market. shecco supports over 150+ partners worldwide in the HVAC&R sector, where the focus is on sustainable refrigeration, heating & cooling technologies using natural refrigerants, including CO₂, hydrocarbons, ammonia, water and air.

With headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, and offices in the US and Japan, shecco offer marketing and communication services globally in three areas: media, events and market development.

Contact

For further questions on the report, shecco and shecco’s services, please contact: