F-gases such as HFCs, PFCs, and SF6 are widely used in equipment such as refrigeration units, air conditioning, heat pumps, and fire suppression systems. Whilst vital to many industries, F-gases have a global warming potential (GWP) thousands of times higher than CO₂, making their proper management and regulation a priority.
With enforcement tightening and the UK committed to phasing down the use of high-GWP F-gases by 2030, now is the time to review your responsibilities and ensure you have robust systems in place.
Following the UK’s exit from the EU, Great Britain now operates under its own version of the F-gas Regulation, based on the Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. While most requirements remain similar to EU law, organisations must understand and meet their obligations to avoid penalties and support climate goals. Northern Ireland continues to follow EU rules under the Northern Ireland Protocol.
If your business produces, imports, exports, uses, services, or disposes of equipment containing F-gases, you may be legally required to:
Reporting is mandatory if, for example, your organisation handled one tonne or more of F-gases (or the CO₂ equivalent), placed equipment on the market containing F-gases above certain thresholds, or used them as feedstock at significant volumes.
For companies placing 10,000 tonnes CO₂ equivalent or more of HFCs on the market or supplying pre-charged equipment, additional independent verification must be submitted.
Businesses operating across both Great Britain and the EU must also ensure that they are complying with regulations in both regions, including separate quota systems and technician certification standards.
To help members manage the complexity of F-gas compliance, Valpak is considering launching a dedicated support service. This could include assistance with:
Would such a service be useful to your business? If so, in what way? And would you be happy for us to contact you to explore your needs further?
Complete our short questionnaire to express interest in an F-Gas service and help shape our offering.
For deeper insights into F-gas regulations and compliance, take a look at our F-Gas report we produced in partnership with GAMBICA.