EU Compliance with the F-Gas Regulation

By 4 July 2009, last Saturday, all EU Member States had to ensure that only companies with certified technicians can purchase fluorinated gases for refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump installations. To check the implementation status of the Regulation, the European Partnership for Energy and the Environment (EPEE) contacted all 27 Member States.

Compliance with F-Gas Regulation status in the EU

Out of the 27 EU Member States:

• 20 Member States are already compliant: The list of compliant countries includes Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
   
• 2 Member States to be compliant after September 2009: Slovakia and Latvia responded to the survey stating that they will not be compliant before September 2009
   
• 5 Member States failed to respond: Denmark, Italy, Lithuania, Greece and Malta did not respond to the survey by EPEE, with the last two not available to respond. Although this means that the compliance status for these countries is “unknown”, in reality it could mean that their status is more likely to be “non-compliant”.

Compliance of companies lagging further behind

Although in at least 20 out of a total of 27 EU Member States the necessary framework has been put into place to ensure that these Member States comply with the F-Gas Regulation by means of having a certification scheme up and running, this does not necessarily mirror the industry situation.

In the UK, for example, some 50% of companies in the RAC industry are now trading illegally after failing to register for an F-Gas certificate before the deadline of July 4, according to UK-based source ACR news. “The estimated 2,500 unregistered RAC firms could now face prosecution as well as other negative knock-on effects which may impact their business such as the validity of commercial insurance”, reads this Monday’s ACR news article.

However, according to Refcom - the government appointed mandatory F gas company certification body for businesses operating in the stationary refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat-pump (SRAC) sector in Great Britain - about 100 firms a day are currently applying to register with the F-gas certification body.

Background

The F-gas regulation, which entered into force in July 2007, is the legal tool to help EU Member States contain, prevent and thereby reduce emissions of high-global warming fluorinated greenhouse gases covered by the Kyoto Protocol, such as HFCs. The legislation applies to refrigerants used in stationary refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pump equipment.

To achieve a reduction of F-Gases from these sources, the Regulation addresses:

• containment, use, recovery and destruction of F-Gases;
• labelling and disposal of products and equipment containing those gases;
• reporting of information on the use and the control of those gases;
• prohibition to place products and equipment on the market;
• and training and certification of servicing personnel and operators involved.