F-Gas Verification
Introduction
F-gases are human-made chemicals that are very strong greenhouse gases (GHG), often several thousand times stronger than carbon dioxide (CO2). Regulation (EU) No 517/2014 on fluorinated greenhouse gases (‘the F-gas Regulation’) was adopted to reverse the increase in F-gas emissions.
Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No 517/2014 requires that production, import, including gases in equipment, export of bulk gases, feedstock use and destruction of the substances listed in Annexes I or II in the Regulation that exceed a threshold are reported annually before 31 March, for the previous calendar year. The Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1191/2014 of 30/10/2014 determines the format and means for submitting the report. Companies must submit their reports using the electronic reporting tool provided by the European Environmental Agency (EEA), accessible from the F-gas portal on the website of the European Commission. For bulk importers exceeding the threshold the deadline is end June each year.
On 5 April 2022, the Commission made a legislative proposal to update the current Regulation. This proposal is currently being negotiated between the European Parliament and the Council.
Who has to report?
·Producers, importers or exporters that produced, imported or exported one metric tonne or 100 tonnes of CO2equivalent or more fluorinated greenhouse gases and gases listed in Annex I and/or II of the F-gas regulations, including companies (producers or importers) to which quotas have been transferred
Undertakings that destroyed one metric tonne or 1 000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent or more of fluorinated greenhouse gases and gases listed in Annex II
Undertakings that used 1 000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent of fluorinated greenhouse gases as feedstock
Undertakings that placed 500 tonnes of CO2 equivalent of fluorinated gases or gases listed in Annex II contained in products or equipment on the market (but no obligation to report if these gases were bought on the EU market or imported as bulk ("released for free circulation") previous to being put in the equipment)
Undertakings that placed on the market pre-charged refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump equipment (both stationary and mobile) where hydrofluorocarbons contained in this equipment have not previously been placed on the Union market.
For Bulk importers (by 30 June every year), each undertaking placing on the market 10 000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent or more of hydrofluorocarbons during the preceding calendar year shall, in addition to reporting though the F-gas portal, ensure that the accuracy of the data is verified by an independent auditor
Please note that while the annual reporting obligation on equipment imports is subject to a threshold of annual imports exceeding 500t CO2 eq, an annual threshold of 100t CO2 eq applies for the obligation to have the declaration(s) of conformity verified and submit the results of the verification to the European Commission
Verification obligations / bulk imports
According to Article 19 (6) of the Regulation, the full report must be verified when the amount of HFCs placed on the market (as automatically calculated in sheet IV, Reporting Section 9C) exceeds 10 000t CO2 equivalents. The legal deadline for the verification document to be available is 30 June while the deadline for reporting is 31 March..
Verification obligations / imports of pre-charged equipment
Importers of equipment containing 100 t CO2 equivalent or more of HFCs per year need to submit verification documents online, by 31 March of the calendar year after the placing on the market (Article 3(2) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/879). For further information please see Guidance: Imports of pre-charged equipment .
Our Verification Services
Via our members can refer to decades of experiences as experts in various industries, quality assurance, accreditation and as GHG verifiers and trainers/coaches. This comprehensive competence enables us to offer high quality auditing services in all areas of monitoring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions including the verification of F-Gas inventories per Regulation (EU) 517/2014. With years of experience in GHG reporting at the corporate, sectoral or national scale, we create the foundation for your milestones of continuous improvement, right from the start. Our verification services are accredited by the German DAKKs.