The International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) highlights the importance of natural refrigerants in meeting the growing global demand for refrigeration and air-conditioning sustainably in its latest report, “The Role of Refrigeration in the Global Economy.”
In the report, the IIR urges policymakers to promote the adoption of natural refrigerants and to increase support for research and development of energy-efficient natural refrigerant-based technologies. The report also calls on industry leaders to strengthen their climate mitigation efforts.
“The use of natural refrigerants offers a sustainable alternative to traditional, synthetic refrigerants, with lower environmental impact,” the IIR explains in its report.
“The use of natural refrigerants offers a sustainable alternative to traditional, synthetic refrigerants, with lower environmental impact.”
International Institute of Refrigeration
Refrigeration emissions
Globally, refrigeration and air-conditioning currently account for around 20% of building electricity demand and contribute approximately 7.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. As demand is projected to more than double by midcentury, the IIR stresses that transitioning to sustainable solutions is essential to achieving international climate and development targets.
While roughly 70% of the sector’s emissions stem from electricity use (indirect emissions), the remaining 30% result from the leakage of high-GWP refrigerants like HFCs (direct emissions). Phasing down HFCs – in line with the Kigali Amendment – could avoid up to 0.4°C (0.72°F) of global warming by 2100.
Natural refrigerants, such as CO2 (R744), ammonia (R717) and hydrocarbons, not only minimize direct emissions but also enable energy savings that further cut refrigeration’s carbon footprint. This is particularly crucial in the food retail sector, where refrigeration systems can account for 30–60% of a store’s total energy consumption.
“In moderate and cold climate regions, recovering heat from refrigeration systems for heating purposes in the colder season is a regular practice and can result in significant energy savings, specifically when applying CO2 as a natural refrigerant,” the report adds.
Growing global stock
According to the report, there were some 5.4 billion pieces of refrigeration equipment in operation globally in 2024, including:
- 1.3 billion mobile air-conditioning units
- 215 million commercial air-conditioning units (including chillers)
- 200 million residential, commercial and industrial heat pumps – which meet around 10% of the world’s space heating needs
- 120 million commercial refrigeration units
- 5.7 million refrigerated vehicles
- 2 million refrigerated shipping containers (known as reefers)
- 85,000 cold storage facilities
- 19,600 ice rinks
Over the coming decades, demand for refrigeration and air-conditioning is expected to increase significantly due to factors like rising temperatures, urbanization, population growth and economic growth. The market for sustainable refrigeration and cooling is expected to more than double in developing countries, increasing from $300 billion (€264.4 billion) a year today to at least $600 billion (€528.8 billion) by 2050. The fastest growth is expected in Africa and South Asia, where markets are due to increase sevenfold and fourfold, respectively.
Countries like India and China are forecast to see a 20% rise in demand for refrigerated transport. In Brazil, one of the world’s largest food producers, cold storage capacity must grow by approximately 30% to keep pace with increasing demand.
While a growing number of natural refrigerant-based technologies are being deployed in emerging markets – such as a propane (R290) chiller for air-conditioning in Ghana, a transcritical CO2 cold storage facility in the Philippines and R290 transport refrigeration units also in the Philippines – the IIR stresses that greater financial and technical assistance is needed.
