Honeywell To Increase Production Of Low-Global-Warming Materials, Reduce Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) Production By Nearly Half Over Five Years

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, N.J., Sept. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) announced today that it will increase production of its low-global-warming-potential (GWP) refrigerants, insulation materials, aerosols and solvents, and, prior to 2020, will drive a 50 percent reduction in its annual production of high-GWP hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) on a CO₂ equivalent basis. The company projects that use of its low-GWP Solstice^® HFC replacements will eliminate more than 350 million metric tons in CO₂ equivalents by 2025, equivalent to removing 70 million cars from the road for one year.

The company and its suppliers anticipate spending nearly $900 million in R&D and new capacity, mainly in the U.S., in the coming years to produce next-generation refrigerants, insulation materials, aerosols and solvents, which have global warming potentials equal to or better than carbon dioxide and at least 99 percent lower than most technologies used today. Honeywell has invested nearly $350 million to date and today announced that it and its suppliers plan to spend approximately $550 million more to support the new products.

Honeywell has already reduced its CO₂-equivalent fluorocarbon production by 30 percent since 2007 by converting legacy production assets to low-global-warming technologies. The company plans to reduce CO₂-equivalent production of HFCs by an additional 50 percent over the next five years as customers throughout the world adopt new LGWP products to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase energy efficiency and meet proposed tighter U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations.

Honeywell made the announcement at a White House event where John Podesta, Counselor to U.S. President Barack Obama; Gina McCarthy, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator; Dr. Ernest Moniz, U.S. Secretary of Energy; and Todd Stern, U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change announced the administration's support for reductions in HFCs. As part of the Climate Action Plan President Obama launched last year, the Administration is partnering with industry leaders like Honeywell that are investing in the next generation of safer HFC alternatives and incorporating climate-friendly technologies into their products and services.

"Regulators around the world are taking steps to address climate change, and Honeywell is an industry leader in this area with technologies that significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and an array of technologies that promote energy efficiency and cleaner energy production," said Darius Adamczyk, president and chief executive officer of Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies.

Honeywell has developed a range of hydrofluoro-olefin (HFO) products with extremely low global warming potentials – either equal to or less than carbon dioxide – that are safe, available today and capable of making a significant positive environmental impact. These products are alternatives to HFCs that are energy-efficient, safe to use, non-ozone-depleting and have a minimal global warming profile.

Honeywell's Solstice^® line of HFOs include Solstice yf for automobile air conditioning, Solstice Propellant for aerosol applications, Solstice Liquid Blowing Agent and Gas Blowing Agent for foam applications and Solstice Performance Fluid for use as an industrial solvent. Each of these products has been approved under the EPA's Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program. Solstice yf is already being used in more than 1 million vehicles, a number that is expected to double this year. Widespread adoption of Solstice yf would yield the equivalent environmental benefit of removing 30 million automobiles from the roads worldwide.

In addition to its industry-leading line of low-global-warming-potential HFOs, Honeywell's Fluorine Products business manufactures and supplies non-ozone-depleting refrigerants used by top air-conditioning and refrigeration makers worldwide, blowing agents for energy-efficient foam insulation, and hydrofluoric acid and precursors for nuclear fuel.

Nearly 50 percent of Honeywell's portfolio is dedicated to energy-efficient products and services. In addition to developing and producing low-global-warming materials, Honeywell manufactures programmable thermostats and energy management systems, turbochargers, green fuels, industrial controls and lighter aircraft components. The use of Honeywell technologies could reduce energy demand in the United States by 20 to 25 percent if they were immediately and comprehensively adopted across the residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation sectors.

Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies (PMT) is a global leader in developing advanced materials, process technologies and automation solutions. PMT's Advanced Materials businesses manufacture a wide variety of high-performance products, including environmentally friendlier refrigerants and materials used to manufacture end products such as bullet-resistant armor, nylon, computer chips and pharmaceutical packaging. Process technologies developed by PMT's UOP business (www.uop.com) form the foundation for most of the world's refiners, efficiently producing gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, petrochemicals and renewable fuels. PMT's Process Solutions business (www.honeywellprocess.com) is a pioneer in automation control, instrumentation and services for the oil and gas, refining, pulp and paper, industrial power generation, chemicals and petrochemicals, biofuels, life sciences, and metals, minerals and mining industries.

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.  For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com.

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SOURCE Honeywell