World News

Industry news and insights from Europe and around the World

UK News

Latest news and developments in the United Kingdom

Products

Keep up-to-date with the latest new products and technology

Features

General articles, applications and industry analysis

Midea wins award for R290 air conditioners

CHINA: Chinese manufacturer Midea has received an environmental protection award from the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) for its work in developing propane air conditioners.

Over the past 10 years, Midea has cooperated with UNIDO on a project aiming at replacing ozone-depleting R22 with propane (R290). The company has invested over $7m in converting  a production line to R290-powered products. In addition, 83 of its labs are now dedicated to research around RAC with low GWP refrigerants. 

Midea is said to have sold more than 1,000,000 R290 air conditioners into the European market since their first introduction in 2014, with more than 200,000 already sold in China. The company says its R290 production line has a potential output of 750,000 units per year.

The award for Outstanding Contribution to Environmental Protection recognises Midea’s efforts which are estimated to have phased out 13.2 tons of ozone-depleting potential and reduced 967,490 tons of CO2 equivalent emission per year.

Latest News

4th November 2026

January date for inaugural CESRA event

UK: The newly-formed Central England Society of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (CESRA) has announced a January date for its inaugural event.
4th November 2026

Webinar questions cyber resilience

ITALY: Refrigeration control company Carel will host an interactive webinar on cyber resilience and the European Cyber Resilience Act (CRA).
4th November 2026

France confirms blood storage attack

FRANCE: The French blood transfusion service has confirmed that some of its blood product cold storage rooms were victims of this week’s cyber security incident.
4th November 2026

Refrigerant producers report differing sales

USA: Leading refrigerant manufacturers Chemours and Solstice have announced widely differing Q3 results, reflecting volatility in channel inventory and sector-specific end markets.
3rd November 2026

Indoor ground-source R290 heat pump

GERMANY: Viessmann has expanded its heat pump portfolio with the new Vitocal 300-G intelligent energy, an indoor ground-source heat pump.
3rd November 2026

Update to chilled storage guide

FRANCE: The International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) has published a new edition of its guide on Recommendations for Chilled Storage of Perishable Produce.