EUROPE: Further unconfirmed particulars have emerged of the contents of the provisional F-gas revision settlement reached between the EU Council and Parliament right this moment.

According to data from the European Council, the consumption of HFCs will be utterly phased out by 2050 and the manufacturing of HFCs, when it comes to manufacturing rights granted by the Commission, shall be phased out to a minimal (15%) from 2036. The settlement can also be mentioned to offer for the next quota allocation for the primary two durations than within the Commission’s authentic proposal.

It is alleged {that a} restricted variety of further warmth pump quotas could also be allotted if, because of the bans, not sufficient warmth pumps are put in to fulfill the REPowerEU goal.

New tools product bans

In phrases of the product bans in new tools, these are the proposals so far as we imagine them to be. We could not know for per week or so the total and precise content material.

Self-contained air con and warmth pump tools

1 January 2027
Plug-in room, monobloc air con and different self-contained warmth pump tools, with a most rated capability of as much as and together with 12kW that include F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

When security necessities on the web site of set up wouldn’t enable utilizing alternate options to F-gases with a GWP of 150 or much less, the GWP restrict is 750.

1 January 2032
Plug-in room, monobloc air con and different self-contained warmth pump tools, with a most rated capability of as much as together with 12kW that include F-gases, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

When security necessities on the web site of set up wouldn’t enable utilizing alternate options to F-gases, the GWP restrict is 750.

1 January 2027
Monobloc and different self-contained air-conditioning and warmth pump tools, with a most rated capability of bigger than 12kW however not exceeding 50kW that include F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

When security necessities on the web site of set up wouldn’t enable utilizing alternate options to F-gases with GWP of 150 or much less, the GWP restrict is 750.

1 January 2030
Other self-contained air con and warmth pump tools that include F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities. 

When security necessities wouldn’t enable utilizing F-gases with GWP of 150 or much less, the GWP restrict is 750.

Split air con and warmth pump tools

1 January 2025
Single break up methods, containing lower than 3kg of F-gases listed in Annex I, that include, or whose functioning depends upon, F-gases listed in Annex I with GWP of 750 or extra

1 January 2027
Split air-to-water methods of a rated capability as much as and together with 12kW containing, or whose functioning depends upon, F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

1 January 2029
Split air-to-air methods of a rated capability as much as and together with 12kW containing, or whose functioning depends upon, F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

1 January 2035
Split methods of a rated capability as much as and together with 12kW, containing, or whose functioning depends upon, fluorinated greenhouse gases, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

1 January 2029
Split methods of a rated capability of greater than 12kW containing, or whose functioning depends upon, F-gases with GWP of 750 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities. 

1 January 2033
Split methods of a rated capability of greater than 12kW containing, or whose functioning depends upon, F-gases with GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

Stationary Refrigeration

While using HFCs with GWP of 150 or extra in home fridges and freezers have been banned since 1 January 2015, the brand new guidelines add:

1 January 2026
Domestic fridges and freezers that include F-gases, besides when required to fulfill security
necessities.

Similarly, whereas HFCs with a GWP of 150 or extra have been banned in business fridges and freezers (self-contained tools) since 1 January 2022, the brand new rule extends that to all F-gases:

1 January 2025
Refrigerators and freezers for business use (self-contained tools) that include different F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra.

1 January 2025
Any self-contained refrigeration tools, besides chillers, that comprises fluorinated greenhouse gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities

For refrigeration tools, besides chillers and tools lined within the self-contained refrigeration tools ban (above) and the restrictions on multipack centralised refrigeration methods with a rated capability of 40kW that got here into pressure on 1 January 2022, the brand new guidelines add:

1 January 2025
A ban on new tools utilizing F-gases gases with a GWP of 2500 or extra, besides tools meant for software designed to chill merchandise to temperatures under -50°C.

1 January 2030
A ban on new tools utilizing F-gases with a GWP of 150 or extra, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

Chillers

For chillers, the brand new bans are:

1 January 2027
A ban on using F-gases with a GWP of 150 GWP or extra for chillers as much as and together with a rated capability of 12kW, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

1 January 2032
A complete ban on F-gases in new chillers as much as and together with a rated capability of 12kW, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

1 January 2027
A ban on F-gases with a GWP of 750 for brand new chillers above 12kW, besides when required to fulfill security necessities.

Maintenance

The preliminary settlement gives for a ban on sure tools essential to restore and preserve present tools. From 2025, upkeep tools for refrigeration tools utilizing F-gases with a excessive world warming potential shall be prohibited until the gases are reclaimed or recycled, through which case they are going to profit from a derogation till 2030. 

An identical ban shall be launched for upkeep tools for air con and warmth pump tools earlier than 2026, with a derogation for reclaimed or recycled gases till 2032. In 2032, a upkeep ban shall be utilized to stationary refrigeration tools designed to chill merchandise to temperatures under -50 °C through the use of F-gases with decrease world warming potential, with a everlasting derogation when recycled or regenerated gases are used.

The textual content units the worth for HFC quota allocation at €3. Part of the income shall be used to cowl the executive prices of implementing the F-gas regulation, and the remaining will go to the final EU price range.

The textual content features a obligatory prolonged producer duty (EPR) scheme from 1 January 2028 for F-gases in merchandise and tools falling throughout the classes {of electrical} and digital tools lined by Directive 2012/19/EU (on waste electrical and digital tools).

The provisional settlement additionally requires Member States to make sure “effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions” for regulatory breaches. The sanctions ought to embrace at the least fines, confiscation of merchandise, non permanent exclusion of merchandise from public procurement contracts and non permanent commerce bans. The sanctions should be appropriate with the Environmental Crime Directive and nationwide authorized methods. If Member States resolve to set thresholds on this context, they need to be above a set minimal.

Ozone depleting substances

The preliminary settlement confirmed that ODSs are prohibited in virtually all instances, with solely strictly restricted exemptions. The textual content comprises an exemption for using ODSs as uncooked supplies for the manufacturing of different substances. 

Both agreements will now be submitted for approval to the representatives of the Member States within the Council (Coreper) and the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment. If authorised, the textual content will have to be formally adopted by each establishments earlier than it may be printed within the Official Journal of the EU and enter into pressure.