The red R134a sticker on a refrigerant line fitting in the image above is found under the bonnet of a cutting-edge electric vehicle that is selling well in Australia. The Hyundai Kona. Inset is a J639 label from another hi-tech EV, the Jaguar I-Pace, sold in Australia carrying 850 grams of R134a. The Kona uses … Continue reading Car-makers keep using high-GWP refrigerant
Expert committee denounces lack of EC response to illegal, hazardous refrigerant import A new committee established to tackle the challenges of fluorinated greenhouse gas (F-gas) regulations has slated the European Commission’s handling of illegal refrigerants. The ‘Initiative Coolektiv’, which is led by experts from companies such as Honeywell, Chemours and Westfalen, states that refrigerants equivalent … Continue reading Illegal refrigerant trade soldiers on
The end of Australian car production by Ford, Holden and Toyota has not resulted in greater uptake of R1234yf refrigerant, according to the latest Cold Hard Facts report commissioned by the Department of the Environment and Energy. Cold Hard Facts (CHF) is a detailed examination of the Australian refrigeration and air-conditioning (RAC) industry, with the … Continue reading Slow YF uptake increase since end of Aussie car-making
California has voted to pass a new act that will reduce the use of “super-polluting” HFCs in an effort to cut global warming. The announcement of the new California Cooling Act comes as a great relief to many. Recently, the Trump administration has begun unwinding Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) legislation that aimed to cut the … Continue reading US fight over HFC use rumbles on
New regulations and permit schemes in the works New Zealand environment minister David Parker has announced that the country will delay its ratification of the Kigali Amendment by 12 months. The year-long hiatus is to allow New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to carry out the required health and safety amendments before ratification … Continue reading NZ to ratify Kigali in late 2019
A staggering 32 executives from HVAC and refrigeration companies have written to US President Donald Trump and urged him to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol. The letter, which was copied to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, represented the views of companies such as Honeywell, Chemours, Dow Chemical, Ingersoll Rand, Arkema and Fujitsu … Continue reading US wavers on Kigali
Talks start for real in Geneva after years of deadlock By Refrigerants Australia executive director Greg Picker, reporting from Switzerland Negotiations on an HFC phase-down began in Geneva in April this year. These talks are noteworthy because for the first time since the proposal to phase down HFCs was suggested in 2009, there was agreement … Continue reading HFC phase-down hope
IT’S official: A global HFC phasedown under the Montreal Protocol will be negotiated and could be agreed to as early as next year, now that the main objectors to forming an HFC contact group have softened their previously hard-line stance. The breakthrough was made in Dubai, on the eve of the 27th Meeting of the … Continue reading Global HFC phasedown progresses in Dubai
Despite independent safety study, DoE sees barriers to action In its Review of the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Programme options paper, the Australian Department of the Environment says that as a Commonwealth authority it does not consider itself to have responsibility for the safety aspects of its central position within the refrigeration and air … Continue reading Ozone review pays lip service to safety concerns
VASA was among the 13 industry organisations David Caple & Associates consulted with, in addition to 22 regulators, eight training organisations, 17 suppliers and service providers, one trade union, one insurance group and seven overseas advisors. Conclusions of the report are not as definitive as VASA or many others in the industry would have hoped, … Continue reading Recommendations of David Caple report find their way into the Ozone Review technical analysis
