World News

EUROPE: As expected, the revision proposal to the European F-gas regulation (517/2014) was passed at its first parliamentary reading in Strasbourg today.

BELGIUM: ASERCOM, the Association of European Refrigeration Component Manufacturers, advanced its benchmark certification process in 2023 with the certification of a further 137 condensing units.

SWEDEN: Subscription-based heat pump company Aira has announced the completion of a €145m Series B financing round with leading climate tech investors from Europe, the US and Asia. 

LATVIA/BELGIUM: The Latvian Association of Refrigeration Equipment Engineers (LSIA) has joined the European contractors group AREA. 

EUROPE: The proposals for the revision of the European F-gas regulation are expected to pass tomorrow’s European parliamentary vote with a large majority. 

CHINA: Chinese scientists claim to have synthesised a supersolid material that can be cooled to near absolute zero without relying on increasingly scarce helium.

JAPAN: Scientists in Japan claim to have developed an inorganic solid refrigerant with the world's best cooling performance.

USA: The Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) has written to the European Commission expressing its concerns over aspects of the European F-gas revision proposals.

GUATEMALA: The Republic of Guatemala becomes the first country this year to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol.

USA: Aldi has announced that it will transition to “natural refrigerants” across all of its US stores before the end of 2035.

NETHERLANDS: Chemours has successfully contested a €500,000 penalty for releasing 4.5 tonnes of ozone depleting HCFC22 from its fluoropolymer plant in Dordrecht.

USA: The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced that a further four manufacturers, Bosch, Daikin, Midea, and Johnson Controls, have passed its cold climate heat pump challenge.

USA: Carrier has signed an agreement with Montana Technologies to develop and commercialise Montana’s transformational AirJoule dehumidification and cooling technology.

DENMARK/UK: Danish food processing equipment manufacturer Carsoe A/S is to sell its UK-based Freezertech plate freezer business to fellow Danish company DSI Dantech.

JAPAN: More than 90% of households in Japan own an air conditioner but less than half use its heat pump heating capabilities, favouring fossil fuel heaters for their main heating.

USA: A new survey reveals that more than half of homeowners in the USA are not fully aware of heat pumps and their function and therefore have not considered the purchase. 

USA: Thermal management company Modine has purchased the intellectual property and other specific assets of TMGcore, a Texas-based specialist in liquid immersion cooling technology for data centres.

USA/GERMANY: Carrier has completed the €12bn acquisition of German manufacturer Viessmann Climate Solutions, following the deal’s clearance by the European Commission in December.

SWEDEN/INDIA: Beijer Ref has acquired a 70% stake in Chillaire Solutions, an Indian importer and distributor of refrigerant.

JAPAN: A collaboration between air conditioning manufacturer Fujitsu General and Japan’s NOK Corporation has found that fragrance can have a positive effect on concentration and alertness.

ROMANIA: In an effort to crack down on illegal imports, the newly-established Association of F-Gas Companies Romania has supplied refrigerant analysers and offered training to customs authorities in Romania. 

JAPAN: An industrial high-temperature water-output heat pump chiller designed by Daikin has won an award at Japan’s Energy Conservation Awards.

ROMANIA: Authorities in Romania have blocked the importation of over 4,000 cylinders of R134a refrigerant from China at the Black Sea port of Constanta.

SWEDEN: Swedish climate control solutions company Munters has received a $65m order from a leading US data centre colocation operator. 

TAIWAN: An explosion and fire at a refrigerant factory in Taoyuan City, Taiwan, has killed one employee and sent three others to hospital with burns.

FRANCE: A subsidiary of certification company Eurovent is developing a new service to help companies comply with the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

JAPAN/CAMBODIA: Daikin Industries has established Daikin Airconditioning (Cambodia) Co Ltd to support Cambodia’s growing air conditioning market.