Refrigerants Australia and the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturers Association (AREMA) have submitted recommendations to the Australian Government on proposed global warming potential (GWP) limits for refrigerants in new equipment. The submission responds to a consultation under the Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management Standard (IChEMS) and proposes implementation dates and limits across HVAC, heat pumps and refrigeration equipment.
The associations propose a GWP limit of 700 from 2030 for HVAC and heat pump equipment, including split-system air conditioners, packaged units, hot water heat pumps and chillers. A limit of 150 is proposed for portable and window air conditioners, dehumidifiers, domestic refrigeration and small display cabinets. For commercial refrigeration, the submission recommends an interim limit of 1500 during 2028–2030, followed by 700 in 2030.
The organisations favour 2030 over 2028 for most equipment categories, citing existing inventories, long-term commercial contracts, equipment testing requirements and the need to train technicians to handle flammable, toxic and high-pressure refrigerants. They also propose immediate GWP restrictions below 700 for data centres and exemptions for essential applications and certain replacement components, with spare-part provisions extending to 2038.
The submission calls for lifecycle refrigerant management requirements to be extended to HFOs and other alternative refrigerants, including hydrocarbons, CO2 and ammonia. Recommendations include import reporting, technician licensing, supply-chain controls, restrictions on disposable cylinders and mandatory participation in approved refrigerant stewardship schemes.
The associations warn that delayed equipment transitions could worsen refrigerant supply shortages as Australia’s HFC import quota declines. An assessment included with the submission projects that the quota will fall from 5.25 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2025 to 2.90 million tonnes in 2030. Under its baseline scenario, national refrigerant inventories could be effectively exhausted during late 2029, with HFC-404A and HFC-410A identified as major near-term supply risks.
Refrigerants Australia and AREMA also recommend against setting additional GWP limits for the 2030s before further industry consultation. They propose reviewing future limits based on the technologies available to the Australian market and have offered to work with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water on the technical details of the proposed regulations.
