Given the high Global Warming Potential (GWP) of HFC refrigerant gases, the F-Gas regulation came into force in 2015, the purpose of which is to combat climate change with the gradual elimination of HFCs. The objective at European level is to reduce 79% of its consumption in 2030, compared to 2009-2012 levels. Likewise, regulation was created in order to stimulate the development of alternative solutions and guarantee fair competition between key sectors of the economy. This has meant for the industry the gradual reduction of imports of HFC greenhouse gases through a quota system - which applies to all access points to the EU, with the aim of controlling the entry of fluorinated gases into the European market. However, it is in this context that the HFC black market emerges that seeks to circumvent this regulation.
In Spain, the entry into force of the F-Gas was accompanied by a tax on Fluorinated Gases that came into force the previous year, in 2014, and which has been an added aggravating factor for illegal trade in the country. As Diego García, general director of Kimikal and member of Aefyt, explains in the webinar, “the truth is that, in Spain, since the entry into force of the Fluorinated Gases tax and the F-Gas regulation, we have not perceived the impact positive effect of the reduction of imports required by this regulation through the use of quotas. "On the other hand, we have observed the emergence of a suspicious massive offer of products with reduced prices from other distributors."