TABLE OF CONTENTS

EU Policies: MAC Directive & F-Gas Regulation
Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) Directive
Adopted in 2006, the MAC Directive (Directive 2006/40/
EC relating to emissions from air-conditioning systems in
motor vehicles) bans MAC systems working with fluorinated
GHGs with a Global Warming Potential (GWP)
higher than 150 from 2011 for new types of vehicles, and
for all new vehicles as of 2017. The ban therefore covers
the most commonly used refrigerant, HFC134a (GWP =
1,430).
The mechanism to implement the Directive is the type
approval procedure at national level, by which car manufacturers
need to homologate their vehicles before they
can be put on the market. With the automotive sector
seeking a global solution for their MACs, EU manufacturers
have announced that they will be using a next generation
chemical refrigerant with low-GWP to meet the
requirements of the Directive. These included German
carmakers, which had initially committed to using natural
refrigerant CO 2
.
Nonetheless, new MACs with low-GWP refrigerant are
still to make their debut on the EU market due to lack
of availability of the new chemical substance, with one
carmaker already reported to have acquired compliance
exemption by a national type approval authority – a development
that might contaminate overall effectiveness
of the Directive.
Looking at the future, with the ban in place, and flammability
as a property of refrigerants gaining increasing
acceptance, hydrocarbon natural refrigerant which
are widely used worldwide in the MAC servicing sector,
could also be one of the future solutions selected for new
MACs by carmakers. Natural refrigerant CO 2
is also seen
as a good candidate to cover both heating and cooling
needs for electric vehicles, which are to gain market
share in the EU and worldwide.
Overall, the Directive has had a positive impact on natural
refrigerants, by enabling development of CO 2
technology
and components not only for passenger vehicles
but also for other applications currently not in the scope
of the Directive, including buses and trains. It has also
benefited the know-how in natural refrigerant CO 2
for
stationary applications.
The MAC Directive has set a precedent in restricting the
GWP allowable for refrigerants in a specific application.
The impact of the Directive spans wider than the EU,
with US authorities also considering a ban on the use
of high GWP HFC134a in motor vehicle air conditioning
systems. California is also proposing to incentivise the
use of low-GWP refrigerants in Mobile Air Conditioning
(MAC) systems of new vehicles.
F-Gas Regulation
To address the issue of emissions related to the use of
HFCs, the European Union has adopted the F-Gas Regulation
(Regulation No 842/2006 on certain fluorinated
greenhouse gases). In place since June 2006 in the EU,
the overall objective of the F-Gas Regulation is to prevent
and thereby reduce leakages of high-global warming
f-gases such as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The regulation’s
main impact is on systems containing 3 kg or more
refrigerant, to which regular leakage checks and record
keeping apply, in addition to end-of-life and repair requirements.
Owners and operators of such systems bear
additional costs to meet the various requirements, while
on the other hand natural refrigerant equipment is out
of the scope of the Regulation and its requirements.
“The application and enforcement of this Regulation
should spur technological innovation by encouraging
continued development of alternative technologies and
transition to already existing technologies that are more
environmentally friendly”, reads the text of the Regulation.
Although not placing any use bans on the HVAC&R
sector, the Regulation is seen as an indication of stricter
requirements in the future, with several manufacturers
of stationary equipment carrying out R&D and investing
in natural refrigerants to insure against future strengthening
of the Regulation and potential use and marketing
restrictions. The Regulation has also inspired natural
refrigerant training initiatives that are being developed
in parallel to f-gas training courses, together with private
initiatives to phase out high GWP gases by supermarket
chains (see UK and Switzerland) and global consumer
goods end users (CGF 1 , Refrigerants Naturally!).
Future developments with this Regulation is crucial for
the natural refrigerant industry, with the EU executive
body, the European Commission, currently considering
a revision that is likely to result in strengthened requirements.
A first report assessing the effectiveness of
the Regulation suggests that more action is required in
addressing HFC emissions, if the EU is to meet its longterm
emissions reduction targets (European Commission,
2011). The same report considers different options
for achieving additional reductions of f-gas emissions
in the EU, including use and marketing prohibitions for
new equipment and products, voluntary environmental
agreements at Community level, a tax on sales of HFCs
and pre-charged equipment, stricter containment and
recovery measures etc. Although currently too early to
assess what could be the preferred approach for achieving
additional HFC emissions reductions in Europe, it
may be expected that requirements be tightened, further
bridging the capital cost gap between traditional
and natural refrigerant technologies.
1 Consumer Goods Forum
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