Chemours and Honeywell filed a petition for rehearing of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals decision concerning the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program.
The SNAP program calls for more ozone-friendly refrigerants for vehicles, businesses and homes, a key product line for Chemours.
Wilmington-based CChemours stated in a release that the legal basis of the SNAP 20 rule was well-founded, and the court’s ruling exceeded its jurisdiction, effectively invalidating a decades-old EPA regulation.
Chemours argued that the decision failed to take into account the EPA’s original directive to ensure that safer alternatives are used to replace ozone-depleting substances.
The court unanimously agreed with the EPA’s determination that these and other alternatives developed by U.S. companies have a lower overall risk to human health and the environment.
The SNAP program has a long history of encouraging the development of innovative solutions that provide critical societal value in refrigeration, air conditioning, insulation, and other segments, the Chemours release stated.
Chemours noted that American companies have invested more than $1 billion to develop, commercialize, and build U.S. manufacturing facilities to produce and use novel alternatives such as hydrofluoro-olefin (HFO) technology—a technology that is being adopted worldwide.
The world will continue to focus on safer and more energy efficient solutions, and Chemours remains committed to continuing to support these market and societal needs, the Chemours release concluded.
Despite the uncertainties over SNAP, Chemours’ shares been trading in near record territory and finished trading 0on Friday at about $51.70 a share. In 2016, share prices slid below $4 a share on concerns about debt and environmental liabilities. The company was spun off from DuPont in 2015.
