Integrated reefer NEWS First quarter 2015 Stay on By Soren Leth Johannsen, Chief Commercial Officer January 1st 2015 is a date that everyone in the reefer industry ought to have noted. This day marked the beginning of a gradual phase-down of HFC gases, which the reefer industry is using as refrigerants. The phase-down is based on the EU’s F-gas regulation and will be managed by means of a quota system. As early as 2018 and 2021, there will be dramatic drops in production quotas down to 63% and 45% respectively, compared with the 2015 level. Moreover, US and Canada EPA proposals also include a commitment to phase-out HFC gases in some refrigeration sectors. The regulation will gradually include some prohibitions, although it is still not 100% clear when these will directly affect the reefer container industry. However, the trend is 100% clear: sooner or later, regulation will impact HFC gases with the highest Global Warming Potential (GWP) as refrigerants in reefer units. This applies especially to R404A (GWP = 3922), which has a GWP almost three times higher than the alternative refrigerant R134a (GWP = 1430), which is widely used in the market today. To put things in perspective: during its lifetime, refrigerant leakages from a reefer using R404A easily equal the equivalent CO2 emissions that would be generated by driving a Volkswagen Polo 300,000 km! The purpose of the quota system is to restrict the supply of refrigerants with high GWP and, as a consequence, prices will drive up. 批 The table shows the planned HFC quotas expressed as percentages of 2015 levels. Year % 2015 100% 2016-17 93% 2018-20 63% 2021-23 45% 2024-26 31% 2027-29 24% 2030 21% a safe course Another major topic on the public agenda is food waste in the supply chain from farm to fork. On 18 December 2014, the UK newspaper The Guardian quoted Dr Lisa Kitinoja, founder of the Postharvest Education Foundation, for her belief that “some businesses may have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo of high food losses as this keeps the demand for fertilisers, seeds, tools and services high. Corporate support to date has included Maersk [Container Industry’s] sponsorship of the World Food Preservation Center, a collaboration of 10 universities committed to reducing world hunger, and US food processing giant ADM’s funding of the University of Illinois’ Institute for the Prevention of Postharvest Loss – but far more could be done to help producers in the developing world to reduce waste.” MCI believes that the reefer industry in its entirety can play a positive role in reducing food waste. A good example of innovation for food preservation is the Star Cool CA system. Introduced in 2009, the system has carried hundreds of thousands of fresh food loads under controlled atmosphere to distant destinations across the globe with the >30,000 large fleet. More than 10 shipping lines are now using the proven CA system. With a simple modification, Star Cool CA can also carry lowrespiring produce such as blueberries and lychees. 2014 ended on a positive note for Star Cool and MCI reefer containers. As the year end approached, we achieved significant bookings into 2015. 2015 is expected to outgrow 2014 measured both in terms of total market volume backed by growth in transport and MCI ’s market share. The market is mature for our San Antonio, Chile investment, which is at time of writing undergoing the final calibration of production equipment. With animals, it is often the case that the larger the mammal, the longer the gestation period. As far as this project is concerned, we have learned that the same rule applies to our reefer factories! Source: European Parliament legislative resolution on fluorinated greenhouse gases: http://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/f-gas/legislation/docs/fluorinated_greenhouse_gases_en.pdf Environmental regulation is a jungle and even more so when you are operating across oceans and borders. In this issue of Integrated Reefer News, we will try to provide you with an overview of the regulations and how they impact on your reefer fleet.
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