HFC Refrigerants Market - By Type, By Application, By Geography - Global Opportunity Analysis & Industry Forecast, 2024 - 2030

HFC Refrigerants Market Overview

HFC Refrigerants Market Size is forecast to reach $703.2 million by 2030, at a CAGR of 1.3% during forecast period 2024-2030. HFC stands for hydro-fluorocarbons. HFCs are used primarily in refrigeration systems worldwide. Some of the most commonly used HFC refrigerants are R-404A, R-410A, R-32, R-134a, and R-407C. Refrigeration and air conditioning in residential buildings, as well as in automobiles, use HFCs. There has been steady progress in India, and around the world, in phasing down the use of harmful climate-damaging hydro-fluorocarbons (HFCs) in air conditioners. In spite of the EPA's regulations on HFCs temporarily stalling progress in the United States, governments and businesses around the world are implementing the Kigali Amendment to ensure that HFCs, like their ozone-depleting predecessors, are phased out. In addition to being used in air conditioners, HFCs are also used in home, business and car air conditioning systems. Compared to carbon dioxide, HFCs are extremely potent greenhouse gases with a global warming potential (GWP) thousands of times that of carbon dioxide. In other words, emitting a kilogram of an HFC contributes as much to climate change as emitting a ton or more of carbon dioxide. 

COVID-19 Impact

In concordance with decades of research and experience, heat, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are capable of reducing the spread of viruses when properly maintained and operated. As reported by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), these vital building systems can also reduce the risk of infection. HVAC systems provide clean, filtered air along with these primary mitigators, as well as effectively introducing fresh air levels and containing contamination in a built setting. The current vaccine cooling and freezing technologies use HCFCs (or even CFCs), but mostly HFOs and HFCs, which have a relatively low energy efficiency compared to HC refrigerants. The cold chain for vaccines, including equipment used for cooling and freezing, is quite complex in both developed and developing countries. The pandemic COVID-19 poses a unique logistical and economic challenge across the globe. Many consider the deployment of the vaccine to 70 percent of the global population within two-three years to be the largest refrigeration project in history.

Report Coverage:

The report: “HFC Refrigerants Market– Forecast (2022-2027)”, by IndustryARC, covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of the HFC refrigerants Market.

By Type: R23, R32, R134a, R404A, R407A, R410A, R417A (ISECON MO59), R422A (ISECON MO79), R422D (ISECON MO29), R423A (ISECON 39TC), R424A (RS-44), R427A (Forane 427 A), others.
By Application Refrigeration (industrial, Domestic, Transport, Commercial), Chillers, Air Conditioning System (Window, Split ACs, VRF), Others (Package Terminal, Package Rooftop, MAAC.
By Geography: North America (USA, Canada, and Mexico), Europe (UK, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Russia, Belgium, and Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, Indonesia, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Rest of APAC), South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Rest of South America), Rest of the World (the Middle East, and Africa).

Key Takeaways

• According to The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited, using a new econometric model, our research shows that cooling equipment sales will reach 460m units per year by 2030, an increase of 18% over 2018.
• The Asia Pacific region is expected to grow at a high CAGR of 2.5% during the forecast period. China will drive demand in an absolute sense. Nevertheless, other markets are expected to grow at a faster rate, such as India and Indonesia.
• In 2021 domestic refrigeration and residential AC accounted for 62% of total cooling demand. The industrial and transport refrigeration sectors will grow at a rapid pace during the forecast period.

Figure: North America HFC Refrigerants Market Revenue, 2021-2027 (US$ Billion)

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HFC Refrigerants Market: By Type

The R32 segments accounted for approximately 25% of the market share in 2021 and is estimated to grow at a significant CAGR during the forecast period. Among the various types of refrigerants, R-32 is receiving the most attention. The R-32 refrigerant efficiently transports heat and can reduce electricity consumption by up to 10 percent. Additionally, R-32 has a much lower global warming potential (GWP) than the refrigerants commonly used today, such as R-22 and R-410A. Low-temperature refrigeration and air conditioning applications use R32 as a replacement for R410A. This is one of the hydrofluorocarbons with a low GWP. Air conditioning split units use the R-32 (although the charge size must meet EN378 requirements). As a retrofit component, it can't be used on any system, but as a component in a blend with HFO and HFC. It has a GWP of 675 which the better than the other HFC Refrigerants available in the market. In response to the discovery that replacing ozone depletion gases with refrigerants has a greenhouse effect, HVAC companies have begun to search for better refrigerants. As a result of global warming, the earth's temperature has been rising steadily. Manufacturers have begun planning to phase out refrigerants like R-407C, R-410A, and R-134A and replace them with refrigerants with lower GWPs like R32. It has a boiling point of -51°C. R32 uses 78% less refrigerant than R-410A and is being phased in since 2013 in Japan along with most newer products.

HFC Refrigerants Market: By Application

The air conditioning system segment accounted for approximately 30% of the market share in 2021 and is estimated to grow at a significant CAGR during the forecast period. As global temperatures rise, the need for cooling will increase. Air conditioning already makes up the largest segment of the global HVAC market. So, it is expected that HFC Refrigerants will be most widely used in the Air Conditioner Market. Furthermore, the world continues to focus its efforts on limiting global warming and depletion of ozone layer. The air-conditioning market will continue to shift towards more efficient products, cleaner refrigerants, and connectivity that allows for remote monitoring of systems and units, promoting efficiency and energy savings. As per the reports from BSRIA, global air-conditioning unit sales increased by 2.3% in volume and by 2.5% in USD value in 2019. Despite being an older market, the AC market registered growth in the United States in 2019, driven by a healthy economy, accessible and affordable credit, and a robust but waning construction sector.

HFC Refrigerants Market: By Geography

The air conditioning system segment accounted for approximately 32% of the market share in 2021 and is estimated to grow at a significant CAGR during the forecast period. The North American region is expected to be the major production centre for HFC Refrigerants and Air Conditioning market for the forecast period of 2021-2026. The global effort to switch to more environmentally friendly refrigerants is increasing. The presence of well-developed nations such as the USA, and Canada are driving the market for HFC refrigerants during the forecast period. According to the Residential Energy Consumption Survey by the U.S. government, approximately 90 percent of American households have some type of air conditioning. In July 2021, central air conditioners and air-source heat pumps shipped in the U.S. numbered 952,323, down 5.7 percent from 1 new1 million units delivered in July 2020. According to the data published by Air-Conditioning, Heating, & Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), approximately 615,860 air conditioners shipped in the U.S. during July 2020, and 675,373 units are shipped in July 2019.

HFC Refrigerants Market Drivers

Increasing Demand for environmentally friendly refrigerants

As compared to other refrigerants for making air conditioners and chillers, HFC refrigerants have lower global warming potential. One of the refrigerants which is R32 has zero ozone layer depletion effect. Moreover, R32 has favorable thermodynamic properties, e.g., very high evaporation enthalpy, very high volumetric refrigerating capacity, low vapor density (low-pressure drop-in pipelines), and low mass flow. The global warming potential of R32 is relatively low (GWP=675) as compared to other refrigerants. It is estimated that the Indian refrigerator market is worth roughly Rs 19,500 crores (US$ 3.03 billion) and is expected to reach Rs 344 trillion (US$ 5.34 billion) by 2022. During FY18, India produced more than 11.88 million refrigerators. The HFC refrigerant is a good alternative for factory-produced systems (AC units, liquid chillers, heat pumps) because of its favorable properties and the additional action required to reduce emissions. As an alternative to R410A, HFC refrigerants are considered for systems with higher refrigerant charges, such as liquid chillers for air conditioning and process applications, and heat pumps. In any case, the system should be installed at the proper refrigerant charge limit based on the installation site. 

HFC Refrigerants Market Challenges

Energy and Global Warming Impact

To reduce the negative impacts of refrigerants on the environment, industries shifted to HFCs (Hydrofluorocarbons). Previously they were using CFCs for making air conditioners but due to the negative impact of the refrigerants on the environment, the industries decided to shift to better alternative. As per some studies, HFC have zero amount in depleting ozone layer but it is causing harm to environment and causing global warming. The emissions of HFC increase the warming of Stratosphere, which reacts with the environment and destroy the ozone layer. In order to prepare socioeconomically acceptable solutions tailored to meet these needs, it is necessary to minimize greenhouse gas emissions, as well as to work towards better protection of the ozone layer and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions by using refrigerants neutral in the atmosphere. Replacement of this refrigerant with the best alternative that contributes less to the greenhouse effect is a subject of extensive research and debate on global warming, which exacerbates the problem by raising the question of selecting a suitable refrigerant

HFC Refrigerants Market Landscape

Technology launches, acquisitions, and R&D activities are key strategies adopted by players in the Elastomeric Membrane market. Major players in the HFC Refrigerants market include

1. Honeywell International,
2. Zhejiang Juhua,
3. Chemours
4. Arkema
5. Daikin
6. Mexichem
7. Linde
8. Dongyue Group
9. Sanmei
10. Sinochem Group
11. Meilan Chemical