The U.K.’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is seeking input from industry stakeholders on newly a published proposal to revise the country’s HFC phase-down regulations.
The proposed change adjusts the existing HFC phase-down schedule starting on January 1, 2027. It extends the end target, moving it from 79% reduction by 2030 to a 98.6% reduction by 2048. The consultation period opened on November 5 and will close on December 17.
“The UK and [its] devolved governments are committed to bringing greenhouse gas emissions to net zero,” DEFRA said. “HFCs play a role in meeting this objective, and further action on HFCs is needed to support this goal.”
As part of the consultation period, DEFRA seeks to understand the challenges hindering the wider adoption of low-GWP refrigerants, including technological limitations and safety concerns, Jacob Andresen, Head of Domestic F-Gas and ODS at the department, told NaturalRefrigerants. In April, DEFRA held an initial briefing, hosted by the U.K.’s Register of Companies Competent to Manage Refrigerants (REFCOM), to announce its intent to update the HFC regulations.
Legislative gaps
With the proposed changes, the DEFRA addresses gaps in the U.K.’s HFC phase-out commitments. The country’s current f-gas regulation predates the 2016 adoption of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol by two years, with an 79% end-target reduction by 2030 compared to its average recorded levels from 2009 to 2012. The international commitment, ratified by the U.K., mandates an 85% reduction by 2036.
The EU f-gas policy revision in 2024 results in another legislative issue, which sets a complete HFC consumption phase-out by 2050. Since Brexit in 2020, the U.K.’s current f-gas regulations align closely with the EU’s 2014 statute. This creates regulatory divergence with potential import implications for Northern Ireland (NI), which continues to apply EU f-gas regulations as part of its dual market access under the NI Protocol, according to DEFRA.
“[The HFC phaseout proposal] ensures we continue to deliver on both our domestic and international climate commitments,” said Emma Hardy, the U.K.’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Water and Flooding) at DEFRA. It will result in “a near-total elimination of harmful [greenhouse] gases coming onto the market” and support clean heating technologies, including heat pumps, she added.
“[The HFC phaseout proposal] ensures we continue to deliver on both our domestic and international climate commitments.”
Emma Hardy, the U.K.’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Water and Flooding) at DEFRA
Seeking input
In its proposed “high ambition” phase-down timeline, DEFRA sets an 83.8% HFC reduction starting January 1, 2027, from the initial baseline compared to the existing regulation’s 76% reduction. Every three years, the proposal decreases HFC availability by approximately 35%, until it hits the 98.6% reduction end target in 2048.
Along with its proposed HFC phase down, DEFRA outlines three other potential schedules for industry stakeholders to review, including a “medium ambition” timeline, a “matching EU” timeline and a “most challenging” option. Each sets a slightly different yearly target, but the 2048 end targets all come within an HFC reduction of 97.6% or better.
DEFRA generated the schedules based on a 2022 assessment that analyzed the effectiveness and financial impact of the country’s current f-gas regulation, climate ambitions, international compliance and sector-specific analysis. In 2022, the vast majority (74%) of the U.K.’s f-gas emissions, totaling 7.6 million metric tons of CO2e, came from refrigeration and air-conditioning system leaks.
With the proposed changes, DEFRA prioritizes supporting net-zero commitments, delivering on international obligations and implementing a “flexible enough system to support sufficient gas for beneficial purposes,” including the heat pump rollout. It seeks industry input on the proposed phase-down schedule, the alternative options, the technical assumptions and data, and the economic impact on businesses.
Already moving
Rather than waiting for the regulations to address legislative gaps, many of the U.K.’s leading supermarket chains are skipping HFO alternatives and opting for natural refrigerants, according to the ATMOsphere report “Natural Refrigerants: State of the Industry 2024.” ATMOsphere is the publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com.
As of October 2022, Tesco, the UK’s largest supermarket brand in terms of annual turnover, operates 1,000 stores (one third of its locations) with transcritical CO2 (R744) refrigeration. The chain plans to be HFC-free, including in its Ireland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia stores, by 2035.
In its 2024 sustainability report, Sainsbury’s, the country’s second-largest supermarket brand, said that it’s replacing HFC refrigeration systems with those using “natural refrigerant gas.” The U.K.’s fourth-largest supermarket operator, Morrison’s, said in 2021 that it is switching to CO2 refrigeration. As part of its drive to completely transition to natural refrigerants by 2029, ALDI U.K., the country’s fifth-largest supermarket chain, retrofitted 33 stores in 2024 with natural refrigerants.
Recent large-scale thermal projects in the country use ammonia (R717), CO2 and hydrocarbon-based units. The Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC) in Nottingham installed four GEA ammonia heat pump-chiller units, providing 8MW (2,275TR) of heating capacity and 8.7MW (2,474TR) of cooling to replace its gas-fired combined heat and power plant and f-gas-based chillers.
To decarbonize its district heating network, London’s Clapham Park installed two Fenagy air-sourced CO2 heat pumps ‒ a 1.2MW (341TR) unit and a 1.8MW (511TR) unit. The West Midlands town of Solihull supplies 1.6MW (455TR) of district heating and hot water to local public buildings using five air-to-water propane (R290) units and one water-to-water isobutane (R600a) unit, all manufactured by Refra.
“Many air conditioning and heat pump manufacturers already offer units that use alternative gases,” said DEFRA. “The phasedown proposal will provide the industry time and support to transition more completely to those alternatives.
“Many air conditioning and heat pump manufacturers already offer units that use alternative gases.”
DEFRA
