MORRIS TOWNSHIP, N.J.,
Dec. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/
-- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) announced today that investments of
approximately $300 million will be
made by the company and key suppliers to increase production
capacity for HFO-1234yf, a new refrigerant for automobiles with a
global-warming potential (GWP) of less than 1. This GWP is 99.9
percent lower than that of HFC-134a, the current refrigerant in
use, and even lower than that of carbon dioxide.
Among these investments, Honeywell will construct a high-volume
manufacturing plant using new process technology at the company's
existing Geismar, Louisiana,
refrigerants manufacturing site, which is expected to be fully
operational in 2016. The exact size of the plant will depend on
supply agreements that Honeywell is putting in place with major
customers.
"Demand for HFO-1234yf is increasing around the world in
response to concerns about greenhouse gas emissions and the need to
comply with the Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) Directive in
Europe and Corporate Average Fuel
Economy (CAFE) regulations in the U.S.," said Andreas Kramvis, president and chief executive
officer of Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies. "After
many years of analysis by the automotive industry, policymakers and
environmental groups, it is clear that HFO-1234yf is a safe,
effective and robust solution to address global warming and fuel
efficiency. Honeywell's investments will ensure adequate supply to
meet growing demand.
"A significant portion of European demand for the current
automobile refrigerant, HFC-134a, is currently supplied from the
U.S., so our new production plant in Louisiana will mirror this arrangement,"
Kramvis said. "However, Honeywell is also looking at the
possibility of building a plant in Europe, but this will be driven by demand and
the requirements of that market."
HFO-1234yf is being adopted by automakers in part to meet the EU
MAC Directive, a landmark piece of legislation that aims to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions of air-conditioning systems in passenger
cars and light commercial vehicles. The directive requires that
refrigerants in all new vehicle types sold in Europe after Jan. 1,
2013, have a global-warming potential (GWP) below 150. GWP
is a relative measure of how much heat a greenhouse gas traps in
the atmosphere, with carbon dioxide setting the comparison with a
GWP of 1. HFO-1234yf offers a GWP that is less than 1, giving it
even less of an environmental impact than carbon dioxide. (See
"Comparison of Greenhouse Impact" table below.) All cars sold in
Europe after 2017 must meet the
new GWP requirement of less than 150. HFO-1234yf, with a GWP below
1, not only meets this requirement but is more than 99 percent
below the new, stricter regulation.
Automakers in the U.S. are also adopting HFO-1234yf to help
comply with CAFE and vehicle greenhouse gas standards, which aim to
improve the average fuel economy and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions associated with cars and light trucks. Because HFO-1234yf
has an extremely low environmental impact (a GWP of less than 1
compared with a GWP of 1,300 for the current refrigerant,
HFC-134a), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) allows
automakers to receive credits for using HFO-1234yf.
Nearly half a million cars are on the road today using
HFO-1234yf. Third-party data shows that HFO-1234yf's widespread
adoption globally would have the greenhouse gas equivalent of
permanently removing more than 30 million cars from the road
worldwide, or about 3 percent of the total global fleet.
Earlier this year, Honeywell announced the launch of packaging
operations for HFO-1234yf in Japan
to better serve the market in Asia.
HFO-1234yf has the proven ability to perform as an effective
automotive refrigerant in all regions of the world, and Honeywell
continues to develop a global infrastructure to support its global
customer base.
For more information on HFO-1234yf, please visit
www.1234facts.com.
Comparison of Greenhouse Impact: HFO-1234yf vs. HFC-134a vs.
CO2
Refrigerant
|
Atmospheric
Lifetime
|
Global Warming
Potential
|
Fuel Efficiency
(compared with HFC-134a)
|
HFO-1234yf
|
10.5 days
|
Less than
1
|
Same
|
HFC-134a
|
13.4 years
|
1,300
|
Same
|
CO2
|
Ranges from 5 to 200
years
|
1
|
Worse (adoption of
CO2 as a refrigerant in Europe alone would result in annual
consumption increase of 3 billion liters of fuel at a cost of more
than 4 billion Euros to European car drivers)
|
Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies is a global
leader in developing and manufacturing advanced materials and
process technologies. These materials and technologies are used by
people every day in a wide range of industries and applications,
from petroleum refining to environmentally friendlier refrigerants
to bullet-resistant vests. Our advanced materials are critical in
the manufacture of products ranging from nylon to computer chips to
pharmaceutical packaging. Process technologies developed by our UOP
business form the foundation for most of the world's refiners,
efficiently producing gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and
petrochemicals. UOP is now pioneering technology to produce real
fuels from renewable energy sources.
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified
technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide
with aerospace products and services; control technologies for
buildings, homes and industry; turbochargers; and performance
materials. Based in Morris Township,
N.J., Honeywell's shares are traded on the New York, London, and Chicago Stock Exchanges. For more
news and information on Honeywell, please visit
www.honeywellnow.com.
This release contains certain statements that may be deemed
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than
statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or
developments that we or our management intends, expects, projects,
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SOURCE Honeywell