Eurovent has published a policy brief calling for urgent EU action to support the transition to sustainable cooling. The document outlines the priorities to ensure Europe is prepared for a future marked by rising temperatures.
The policy brief highlights the vital role that cooling plays in key sectors such as food cold chain, pharmaceuticals, data centers, electric vehicles, and human comfort.
With global cooling demand expected to triple by 2050 and Europe warming at twice the global average rate, the policy brief positions sustainable cooling as a core pillar of the green transition.
Refrigerant management
It also underlines how modern, efficient cooling can ease pressure on electricity grids
The brief emphasizes energy efficiency, refrigerant management, and access to low-carbon electricity as the three pillars of sustainable cooling. It also underlines how modern, efficient cooling can ease pressure on electricity grids, improve affordability, and even contribute to decarbonization through heat recovery and smart controls.
The key recommendations include an updated EU Heating and Cooling Strategy that reflects the unique challenges of the cooling sector, strengthened Ecodesign and Energy Labelling frameworks to ensure best-in-class cooling equipment, provision of targeted financial incentives for sustainable cooling solutions, integration of cooling needs into the Renovation Wave and the recognition of the HVACR industry’s contribution to EU industrial strategy and the importance of fully implementing the F-Gas Regulation.
Sustainable cooling
The Eurovent Deputy Secretary General, Stijn Renneboog, stated: “After another hot summer, awareness of the importance of sustainable cooling is rising in the Brussels policy sphere.”
“But there are still major misapprehensions about the nature of the challenge. Cooling is about much more than comfort. It is of critical importance in a wide range of essential applications, including healthcare, food, AI, and net-zero manufacturing. Cooling demand is sure to rise across all these applications, and we must prepare for this new reality now.”
future-proof European cooling sector
“Our policy brief is intended as a conversation starter and to provoke reflections. We are ready for dialogue, not just on how to ensure cooling can be sustainable, but on how to ensure these strategic technologies continue to be developed and manufactured right here in Europe,” concluded Stijn Renneboog.
Eurovent invites stakeholders across industry, government, and civil society to engage with the recommendations and collaborate on building a future-proof European cooling sector.
