World News

INDIA: One person died and 12 were reportedly hospitalised on Wednesday (10 September) after a leak in a pipeline at the Gujarat Fluorochemicals refrigerant plant in Ranjitnagar, India.

CANADA/INDIA: Montreal-based Smardt Chillers is to supply its oil-free centrifugal chillers to Indian company Shree Refrigerations, a leading player in cooling solutions serving the defence sector.

USA: Trane Technologies has rung the New York Stock Exchange opening bell to celebrate its fifth year as an HVACR-focused company.

POLAND: Authorities in Opole have concluded that the heat pump explosion in Chrząstowice that killed two people last year was caused by using oxygen to carry out pressure tests.

ITALY: Frigoveneta, the Verona-based commercial and industrial refrigeration contractor has acquired Bonera Refrigerazioni Srl, a family-owned company specialising in the design, installation, and after-sales servicing of industrial refrigeration systems. 

USA: A new refrigerant recovery scheme in the District of Columbia aims to help contractors offset the costs of recovery equipment while also providing an additional revenue stream.

USA: The integration of energy storage, cooling, and humidity control into a single commercial system has been developed by the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Blue Frontier.

GERMANY: Daikin is to transfer hydrobox and hydrokit heat pump unit production from its plant in Güglingen, Germany, to the Czech Republic, with the loss of some 200 jobs. 

POLAND: Officers from Poland’s National Revenue Administration (KAS) have seized 42 tonnes of smuggled F-gas, valued at nearly €1m.

USA: Lennox is claiming that its commercial heat pump rooftop unit is the first to successfully complete the US Department of Energy’s cold climate challenge in the 15-25 tons category.

CHINA: Haier has announced multi-year global partnerships in the world of professional football, signing sponsorship deals with UK Premier League champions Liverpool and all-conquering French team Paris Saint-Germain.

USA: Carrier has launched the largest field trial in its 123-year history to test battery-enabled HVAC systems across the US.

CHINA: Danish manufacturer Danfoss has inaugurated its largest global production facility in China.

USA: A cyber security company has exposed vulnerabilities in Copeland E2 and E3 controllers that could enable unauthorised persons to remotely manipulate parameters and disable systems.

BELGIUM: European HVACR industry association, Eurovent, is calling for urgent EU action to support the transition to sustainable cooling in a a future marked by rising temperatures.

SWITZERLAND: Ammonia heat pumps from Johnson Controls are to be employed in an expansion of a Zürich waste incineration plant supplying the city’s district heating system.

GERMANY: Laurence Roy has left Kelvion to lead the European coldroom sales activities of Viessmann Clean & Cold Solutions. 

USA: Harlem Hospital, which has been treating victims of New York City legionnaires’ disease outbreak, has been identified as one of two possible sources.

SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS: The smallest sovereign state in the Western Hemisphere, Saint Kitts and Nevis, has become the latest country to have officially accepted the Kigali Amendment to phase down HFCs.

EUROPE: Prices for the high GWP gases/mixtures in Europe went down slightly in the second quarter of this year, compared with Q2/2024.

CZECH REPUBLIC: Panasonic has invested €320m in its heat pump factory in the Czech Republic, boosting annual production capacity to 1.4 million indoor and outdoor units from 2030.

USA: Arkema has completed the transition of its R134a refrigerant facility in Calvert City, Kentucky, to produce the new HFO 1233zd. 

SWITZERLAND: Liebherr-Transportation Systems is to supply propane-based HVAC systems to Swiss train manufacturer Stadler Bussnang for integration in 16 battery electric multiple unit FLIRT trains.

USA: Joseph Martinko, Chemours’ president of thermal and specialised solutions, has been awarded the 2025 Winthrop-Sears Medal by The Chemists’ Club. 

USA: Lowe Rental, the UK-headquartered global commercial refrigeration and catering equipment solutions provider, will now be distributing Pastorfrigor refrigeration cases to the US grocery and retail market.

JAPAN: Fujitsu General has said that its name and trademarks will remain “for a certain period” following the completion last Friday of its purchase by Paloma Rheem Holdings.

FRANCE/GERMANY: SPIE, the French provider of multi-technical services in the areas of energy and communications, has acquired Dutch companies Voets & Donkers Koeltechniek BV and its subsidiary VND Technical Services BV.