Greek customs seize 1,296 refrigerant cylinders
15th August 2026
GREECE: Refrigerant valued at over €1m was seized by Greek customs officers in two separate incidents last week.
In total 1,296 cylinders of R404A and R134a were seized by officers from Greece’s AADE revenue department. The smuggling attempts sought to evade duties estimated to exceed €338,000.
In the first incident, officers in the village of Kipoi on the border with Turkey in northeastern Greece discovered 1,000 bottles of R404A hidden under a declared load of plasterboard on a Turkish-licensed truck.
The total value of the cargo was estimated at €884,400 and sought to evade duties and taxes of €283,538.
In the early hours of the same day, customs officers in Doirani, on the border between Greece and North Macedonia, found an additional 296 bottles of R134a during the inspection of an empty container from North Macedonia. The refrigerant was found in a specially designed compartment.
