8April 2016: The 37th meeting of the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG 37) of the parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer discussed challenges involved with adopting a Protocol amendment regarding hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The Group reached agreement on compromise draft text for a formal exemption for high-ambient temperature (HAT) countries, and a linked deferral procedure, but suspended the session without completion of other matters, including on financing.

OEWG 37 met from 4-8 April 2016, in Geneva, Switzerland.

After hearing an update from the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP) on alternatives to ozone depleting substances (ODS), participants dedicated the rest of the session to the work of the HFC Management Contact Group and the mandate outlined in the Dubai Pathway agreed at the 27th Protocol Meeting of Parties (MOP 27), which took place in November 2015, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The OEWG held initial discussions on: other possible essential use exemptions (EUEs) over the course of a HFC phase-down; intellectual property rights (IPR); flexibility in implementation; and various issues involved regarding financing an HFC phase-down. On these last two points, an informal group suggested possible solutions regarding overarching principles and timelines, principles regarding second and third conversions, and enabling activities that the Multilateral Fund may support in an HFC phase-down agreement.

With OEWG 37 unable to complete its mandate in the time allotted, the Earth Negotiations Bulletin reported, delegates agreed to suspend the session with a recommendation to resume OEWG 37 prior to OEWG 38, pending budgetary implications. OEWG 38 is scheduled for 18-21 July 2016, in Vienna, Austria, just prior to an Extraordinary MOP to be held 22-23 July. [IISD RS Meeting Coverage] [UNEP Press Release]