ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) is reminding retailers about the upcoming refrigeration changes that will be in force from the beginning of January and encouraging them to make sure that their store is prepared for the new regulations.
The EU Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases Regulation (also known as the EU F-Gas Regulation), will ban the use of refrigerants with a Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 2,500 or more in certain refrigeration units. It will also ban refrigeration technicians from servicing these units.
This means that some refrigerants (such as R404A) will become increasingly harder to obtain and retailers may see refrigerants increase in price as the service ban gets closer.
Retailers can already prepare for the service ban by contacting their refrigeration technician to find out which of their refrigeration units will be affected, what refrigerants they are currently using and which alternatives they can use to be compliant.
ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “Retailers have a wide range of different refrigeration units and different needs, which is why we are encouraging them to talk to their refrigeration technician to understand more about which option is right for them in order to comply with the upcoming regulation.”
ACS has developed guidance to support retailers prepare for the F-Gas service ban which comes into effect on 1st January 2020. The full guidance is available here.
