Refrigerant emissions in Germany continue to decline, VDKF reports

The German Association of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Contractors (VDKF) has reported a further decrease in refrigerant emissions for 2024. Based on anonymized data collected via the industry software “VDKF-LEC” from approximately 293,000 refrigeration and air conditioning systems, the average leakage rate dropped to 1.07%. In 2017, this rate stood at 3.2%.

The lowest leakage rates were recorded in split air conditioning systems (0.54%), while commercial refrigeration applications showed the highest rates at 1.89%. The data mainly covers systems that are legally required to undergo regular leak checks, depending on their refrigerant charge.

According to VDKF, this improvement is due to increased awareness of the environmental impact of fluorinated refrigerants, as well as the rising cost of these substances. As a result, the share of direct greenhouse gas emissions from refrigerant leaks is decreasing compared to indirect emissions caused by energy consumption.

A detailed analysis of the “VDKF-LEC” data will be published in upcoming issues of the association’s magazine “VDKF Information”, which will be available for free download on the VDKF website.