F-gas plans “seriously jeopardise” climate goals

SPAIN: The Spanish air conditioning manufacturers’ association AFEC has described the European F-gas amendment proposals as “unrealistic” and warns that a steeper phase down would “seriously jeopardise” climate goals.

AFEC has added its voice to the industry voices ranged against elements of the proposed revision  of the F-gas regulation in a document that warns of the serious risks that the proposals pose to Europe’s climate and energy objectives.

In particular, the AFEC document – Towards climate neutrality with the heat pump – explains the challenges of the proposed revision and warns that it could cause a negative impact on the necessary massive deployment of heat pumps.

While AFEC says it recognises that some provisions of the new proposals include positive aspects previously indicated by the industry, at the same time it contains a series of restrictions with a negative impact on the growth of heat pumps. “The analysis used for the F-gas review proposal has been based on unrealistic assumptions and market segmentation, so the conclusions on the impact of said proposal are not accurate,” it states.

AFEC maintains that to guarantee decarbonisation, it is essential to maintain the gradual reduction of the current F-gas regulation and not introduce additional prohibitions on heat pumps.

“The revision of the F-gas must find a balance with other European policies to guarantee the energy transition, so that the requirements to reduce emissions of fluorinated greenhouse gases are aligned with other European policies and objectives, such as the principle of “energy efficiency, first”, the drive towards the decarbonisation of heating or the energy independence of the EU.”

The AFEC document can be viewed and downloaded here.