F-Gas Regulation: Legal provisions for the refrigeration and air conditioning industry.

The F-Gas Regulation is driving the change in the European refrigeration and air conditioning industry towards more climate protection: refrigerants with a high GWP value are gradually disappearing from the market, and more climate-friendly but often flammable refrigerants are gaining in importance.

We have summarised the most important facts concerning the F-Gas Regulation for you and will also keep you up to date with future innovations.

Regulation (EU) No. 517/2014 (so-called F-Gas Regulation) came into effect on 1 January 2015. F-Gas Regulation (EU) 2024/573 came into effect on 11th March 2024.

With the entry into force of Regulation EU No. 2024/573 on 11 March 2024, it is now clearer, after years of negotiations, how the transformation of the refrigeration/air conditioning industry will continue. The regulation includes a stricter phase-down, which provides for a phase-out in 2050. There will be a review of parts of the regulation in 2030 to further monitor and examine its feasibility.

F-Gas Regulation also covers partially fluorinated hydrofluoro­carbons (HFCs) and hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs). Examples of HFCs are the refrigerants R-134a, R-404A, R-507, R-407A/C/F and R-410A.
The objec­tive of the EU Regulation is to reduce emissions of certain fluorinated greenhouse gases.

The GWP value of each refrigerant represents its global warming potential per kilogramme. In the regulation, however, filling quantities are not shown in kilograms, but in CO₂ equivalents, among other things.
HFO refrigerants are not affected by the phase-down.

The new content that is most important to operators of stationary refrigeration and air-conditioning systems, heat pumps, refrigerated trucks and trailers, and ORC systems is summarized for you below.

There will be a gradual reduction (so-called ‘phase-down scenario’) by 2050 in the quantities of HFCs that may be placed on the EU market. Annex VII sets out the phase-down from 2025. Due to the change in the phase-down, this will only apply from 2025 despite coming into force in 2024.

The basis is the average total quantities produced in the EU and imported into the EU in the years 2009 to 2012, expressed in CO₂ equivalents.

For the purpose of carrying out the installation, maintenance, servicing or repair of equipment containing or relying on fluorinated greenhouse gases for its functioning and for which certification or attestation in accordance with Article 10 is required, fluorinated greenhouse gases may only be sold

• to and purchased by companies that hold the relevant certificates or attestations in accordance with Article 10,
• or to and from companies employing persons who hold a certificate or training attestation in accordance with Article 10.

Prohibitions do not apply to military applications and refrigeration systems with product temperatures below -50°C.

Before 2025:

Refrigerants (fresh goods) with a GWP above 2500 are prohibited for the maintenance of refrigeration systems if the quantity exceeds a CO2 equivalent of 40 t.

Since: 01.01.2025:

Refrigerants (fresh goods) with GWP above 2500 are prohibited for the maintenance of refrigeration systems (omission of the 40 t exception).

From 01.01.2026:

Refrigerants (fresh goods) with GWP above 2500 are prohibited for the maintenance of air conditioning systems and heat pumps.

From 01.01.2032

Refrigerants (fresh goods) with GWP above 750 are prohibited for the maintenance of stationary refrigeration systems, except water chillers.

Exemptions for recycled and reclaimed refrigerant (Article 13)

Until 31.12.2029:

Reclaimed and recycled refrigerant with a GWP above 2500 may be used for servicing refrigeration systems.

From 01.01.2025 until 31.12.2031:

Reclaimed and recycled refrigerant with a GWP above 2500 may be used for servicing air conditioning systems and heat pumps.

From 01.01.2032:

Reclaimed and recycled refrigerant with a GWP above 750 may be used for servicing refrigeration systems. Refrigerants with a GWP above 2,500 may no longer be used.

Operators of systems containing fluorinated HFC refrigerants with a global warming potential of five or more tonnes of CO₂ equivalent or containing HFO refrigerants of more than 10 kg shall ensure that the equipment is checked for leaks. For refrigeration systems that are operated with refrigerant blends consisting of HFO and HFC refrigerants, HFO and HFC proportions must be assessed individually according to the following table. The shorter test interval always counts here.

Operators of installations containing fluorinated greenhouse gases with a global warming potential of 500 tonnes of CO₂ or more shall ensure that the equipment is equipped with a leakage detection system that alerts the operator in the event of a leakage.

The leakage detection systems shall be checked at least once every 12 months to ensure their proper functioning.

Operators of equipment which is required to be checked for leaks pursuant to Article 4 shall establish and keep records for each piece of such equipment, containing, among other things, the following information:

• Quantity and type of fluorinated greenhouse gases­contained in the equipment.
• Quantity of fluorinated greenhouse gases added during installation, maintenance or servicing or due to leakage.
• Information as to whether the fluorinated greenhouse gases used have been recycled or reclaimed, including the name and address of the recycling or reclamation facility and, where applicable, the certificate number.
• Quantity of fluorinated greenhouse gases recovered.
• Identity of the undertaking which installed, serviced, maintained and, where applicable, repaired or decom­missioned the equipment, including, where applicable, the number of its certificate.
• Dates and results of the checks performed under Article 4, paragraphs 1 to 3.
• If the equipment was decommissioned, the measures taken to recover and dispose of the fluorinated green­house gases.

Operators of stationary equipment or refrigeration systems of refrigerated trucks and trailers that contain fluorinated greenhouse gases, not contained in foams, shall ensure that these gases are recovered by persons or undertakings certified under Article 10 to ensure that these gases are recycled, reclaimed or destroyed.

The Member States have established training and certification programmes for the following persons:

• Persons who install, service, maintain, repair or decommission the equipment;
• Persons who perform leak checks;
• Persons who recover fluorinated greenhouse gases.

Since 1 January 2017, refrigeration systems, air conditioning systems and heat pumps filled with partially fluorinated hydrocarbons may only be placed on the market if the partially fluorinated hydrocarbons filled into the equipment are included in the quota system.