Under the Australian Governments “Clean Energy Future Plan” synthetic greenhouse gases, like the HFC based refrigerants commonly used in transport refrigeration units, now attract a Carbon price per tonne calculated on their individual Global Warming Potential (GWP).
The GWP assigned per kilo to R404a refrigerant is 3260kg. This means that 1kg of R404a equates to 3.26 metric tonnes of carbon.
When this is applied to the current carbon tax price of $23.00 per tonne it means that every 1kg of R404a refrigerant attracts $74.98 carbon tax.
Example: 3.26 x $23 = $74.98
This new tax goes on top of the existing import levy and the cost price per kilo of refrigerant.
Due to the growing costs surrounding the supply and storage of refrigerants there has been a significant price increase to the most common refrigerants used in the refrigerated transport sector.
This increase will not affect your normal unit servicing cost as there is no refrigerant lost during these services. This increase will only affect breakdowns or repairs which involve refrigerant loss. Due to this it now becomes essential to put into place a preventative maintenance program on your fleet to reduce the risk of a small gas leak spiralling out of control & costing you a full charge of refrigerant.
The Government’s purpose through this tax is to give the industry a price driven incentive to reduce harmful HFC refrigerant leaking into the atmosphere.
Thermal Mark has built a reputation for providing their customers with added value and cost savings through our products and parts, through the great services we offer and the thorough fleet management programs we provide. Following this trend and with the increased refrigerant pricing in mind we have under-taken some comprehensive research into the main causes and the key indicators of refrigeration leaks in a transport refrigeration system.
Prevention is better than Cure!
What we discovered is that customers who remain on schedule with their regular servicing and those who have adopted our programmed fleet checks were 228% less likely to develop a gas related issue which cost them a full charge of refrigerant than those who only initiated repairs when something went wrong. When refrigerant was used in customers who regularly maintain their fleet it was mostly in much smaller quantities due to early detection.
The significant increase in refrigerant price should create the need for fleet owners and managers to re-consider how they maintain and operate their refrigerated vehicles so that they can limit their exposure to the expense of refrigerant loss.
Thermal Mark has adopted an innovative approach to reduce refrigerant leaks in their customer’s fleets; we have trained our technicians at identifying the key indicators of refrigerant loss through our programmed fleet inspections, we use only quality products like our Manuli Refrigeration hose and fittings and we run a comprehensive scheduled fleet maintenance program proven to reduce breakdowns and gas related leaks which will significantly reduce maintenance costs.
Thermal Mark has a strong commitment to preserving the environment. All our trained technicians are fully licensed to handle refrigerants and understand the environmental impact associated with the release of HFC’s. We take refrigerant leaks seriously which is evident when we perform fleet checks and repairs on refrigerated delivery vehicles.
Today, it is extremely important to align yourselves with a refrigeration service provider like Thermal Mark who has implemented a program designed to reduce your breakdowns, lower your vehicle down-time and reduce your leak rates.
If your fleet is lagging in your regular services and it is becoming a little run down, we suggest that you contact the service team at Thermal Mark on 1300 798 380 before you get caught out by a costly refrigerant leak.
Ask us how we can make our efficient fleet check program work for your refrigerated fleet.