Events and Exhibitions
PRELIMINARY AGENDA
RELEASED FOR JUNE
RAC TECHNICAL WORKSHOPS
A technical workshop on climate-friendly refrigeration and air conditioning
(RAC) will take place in Stellenbosch on 20–21 June 2019 to look at ‘green’
cooling solutions and unlocking the uptake of these in the South African
marketplace. Check out the programme.
T
he Western Cape government, together with the Bavarian
State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection,
the Bavarian Environment Agency, and the Deutsche Gesellschaft
für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), is jointly hosting
a technical workshop on the opportunities and challenges
associated with energy-efficient and climate-friendly cooling
solutions in the South African market.
The workshop will take place at the Elsenburg Agricultural
Training Institute in Elsenburg, Stellenbosch, on 20–21 June from
08:00 until 17:00 daily.
BACKGROUND
Currently, most of the refrigeration and air conditioning
(RAC) applications use fluorinated gases (F-gases) —
hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) or hydrofluorocarbons HFCs
— as refrigerants. These substances have a high global warming
potential (GWP) and are up to several thousand times more
potent than carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). When these gases leak — for
example during operation, servicing or when an appliance is
recycled or scrapped — they cause substantial emissions that
contribute to global warming.
The RAC sector currently is responsible for 3.830 million
tons of CO 2 -equivalent emissions globally. With rising ambient
temperatures, the demand for refrigeration and air conditioning
equipment is predicted to increase dramatically. Without any
serious interventions, the RAC sector could be responsible for
13% of global GHG emissions by 2030. The continuing growth of
HFCs in particular, would lead to a 0.1°C temperature rise in 2050,
with the potential to increase up to 0.5°C by 2100. A phase-down
of the production and consumption of HFCs, as stated in the
recently adopted Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol,
can provide an estimated reduction of 6–10% of the total GHG
reductions by 2050.
The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol entered
into force from January 2019. South Africa intends to ratify
www.hvacronline.co.za
the amendment, and is currently working on legislation to
regulate HFCs.
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Development
Planning (DEA&DP) of the Western Cape has shown a keen
interest in encouraging the switch to energy-efficient and climate-
friendly cooling technologies. This could be achieved through
cost-effective mitigation, such as the substitution of HFCs with
natural refrigerants that do not damage the ozone layer and have
low global warming potential. Policy instruments to advance
more sustainable RAC solutions in the European Union, for
example, have proven effective. This has resulted in the adoption
of climate-friendly refrigeration and air conditioning systems that
combine high energy-efficiency with natural refrigerants.
This technical workshop aims to discuss
what is required to unlock the market
uptake of natural refrigerants and
energy-efficient appliances.
OBJECTIVE
This technical workshop aims to bring together government,
as well as manufacturers, distributors and servicing companies
to discuss what is required to unlock the market uptake of
natural refrigerants and energy-efficient appliances in the
Western Cape region. The event will address needs related to the
implementation of international and national policy requirements
and legislation, competence levels of technicians for safe
installation and repair of energy efficient and climate friendly
equipment, as well as suitable and successful best practice
examples from South Africa. Experiences from best practice in
Bavaria will also be presented.
RACA Journal I June 2019
21