Summary: In July 2015, Chemours announced that it would expand the HFO-1234yf
production line in Changshu City, Jiangsu Province, by doubling the production
capacity so as to satisfy the increasing demand from the global vehicle
industry.
On 15 July, 2015, Chemours Company (Chemours) noted the plan to expand the
production line of a new generation refrigerant, Opteon® YF
(2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene – HFO-1234yf) in China. This expansion is aimed at
doubling the production capacity of this low global warming potential
(GWP) refrigerant in China.
Meanwhile, Chemours also stated that recently it would increase the supply of
Opteon® XP serial refrigerants (mainly applied in the commercial
refrigeration field, including supermarket refrigeration system, water chilling
unit, heat pump, cold-chain logistics, etc.) that is also produced on the basis
of hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) technology, in the EU market. This range will be
officially launched on the US market in August 2015. As the market size
enlarges, it is likely to construct related production lines in China.
According to CCM research, the HFO-1234yf production line that Chemours planned
to expand is the joint-venture production line constructed by Changshu 3F
Zhonghao New Chemical Materials Co., Ltd. (3F Zhonghao) in 2010 when 3F
Zhonghao and DuPont (parent company of Chemours) established partnership. Now
the production line, with a capacity of 3,000 t/a, is run by 3F Zhonghao.
Chemours intended to double it to 6,000 t/a.
Thierry F.J. Vanlancker, president of Fluoroproducts in Chemours, stated: “The
HFO-1234yf production line to be expanded in China is targeted to satisfy the
increasing demand for low GWP refrigerants (HFO-1234yf: <1) from the global
vehicle industry during the refrigerant substitution and upgrading”.
The demand for HFO-1234yf is mainly driven up by the MAC Directive from
the EU. The MAC Directive stipulates that:
-
From 2011, the refrigerant used in the
air-conditioning system for new vehicle launched onto the market, should carry
a GWP of <150
-
From 2017, the refrigerant used in the
air-conditioning system for all vehicles produced that very year should carry a
GWP of <150
So far, HFO-1234yf is the only fluorine-enriched refrigerant that meets
the requirement.
In addition, the F-gas Regulations has pushed the EU to carry out quota
regime on hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) from 2015, reduce the application quantity
of HFCs from 2016 and decrease it to 1/5 of that in 2014 by 2030.
What's more, in July 2014, the US Environmental Protection Agency issued a new
regulation to reinforce restriction on the application of HFCs and promulgated
several rules/ measures to accelerate the elimination of HFCs. This would
further speed up the elimination of the traditional mainstream
refrigerant – 1,1,1,2- tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134a) – used in vehicle
air-conditioning system, and give support to the popularization of HFO-1234yf.
It is known that, HFO-1234yf has been accepted by many large vehicle
manufacturers in the world, such as Volkswagen Group,
General Motors Company and Subaru (the automobile manufacturing
division of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd.). By the end of 2015, 9 million new
vehicles around the world are estimated to use this refrigerant.
However, considering the current market status, HFO-1234yf is mainly applied in
developed regions like Europe, America and Japan. In China, relevant downstream
industries barely have demand for it. A sales manager in the Chinese
refrigerant industry disclosed: "HFO-1234yf is mainly used to substitute
HFC-134a. However, no policies in China indicate the elimination of HFCs.
Moreover, the HFO-1234yf price is very high, 6-7 times of the HFC-134a price.
It is not surprised that China has no demand for it. In China, only 3F Zhonghao
produces HFO-1234yf in large scale and exports them to DuPont".
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