South Korea: SCM Frigo CO₂ Condensing Units Installed at New SK Bioscience Site

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SK Bioscience’s new global biopharmaceutical research and process development center in Songdo, South Korea, features eight CO₂ (R744) condensing units (CDUs) from Italian manufacturer SCM Frigo, providing 93.8kW (26.7TR) of cooling capacity for pharmaceutical storage.

The Songdo SK Bioscience facility, which opened in January 2026 at a cost of ₩377.2 billion ($261 million/€229 million), offers 64,000m² (689,000ft²) of floor space and houses South Korea’s largest vaccine-focused research laboratory, according to The Korea Herald. SCM Frigo, part of the Beijer Ref group, supplied two 15.7kW (4.5TR) CDUs and six 10.4kW (3TR) CDUs for the facility.

“We are proud to introduce our CO₂ refrigeration technology to the Korean market,” said Alessandro Franchin, Sales Director at SCM Frigo. “As demand for sustainable and energy-efficient cooling continues to grow worldwide, we believe natural refrigerants will play a key role in the future of refrigeration.”

The specifics: The eight roof-mounted CDUs are staged to provide redundancy while matching the facility’s cooling demand at an evaporation temperature of −5°C (23°F).

• Each unit uses a Bitzer compressor with CR-II mechanical capacity modulation to improve part-load performance, while Carel controls manage the fleet.
• Installed by local contractor Chungwoon System, the units also feature EC fans.

Potential growth: Although CO₂ refrigeration penetration appears low in South Korea, government regulations and manufacturer support are steering the market to natural refrigerant solutions.

• As of December 2025 four stores in the country and six industrial sites used transcritical CO₂ refrigeration according to estimates in ATMOsphere’s 2025 report “Refrigeration: Commercial and Industrial Refrigeration with Natural Refrigerants.” ATMOsphere is the publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com.
• South Korea has introduced a regulation setting a GWP limit of 150 for new commercial refrigeration equipment to be implemented in 2030. Starting in 2028 the rule will ban refrigerants in new freezing and refrigeration chillers with a GWP higher than 1,500.
• In 2024 U.S.-based component manufacturer Copeland signed a memorandum of understanding with South Korean commercial refrigeration manufacturer CRK as part of a large-scale government project. Under the agreement, Copeland will provide technical expertise through education and training, as well as integrated CO₂ compressors, controls and monitoring systems. 

Other news: Beijer Ref Korea recently installed a 200kW (56.8TR) CO₂ refrigeration system at the expanded cargo terminal three at South Korea’s Incheon International Airport, operated by Atlas Cargo Terminal.

• The system supplies 175kW (49.7TR) of cooling capacity for chilled storage at 2–5°C (35–41°F) with an evaporating temperature of −5°C (23°F) and 25kW (7.1TR) for frozen goods stored at approximately −25°C (−13°F) at an evaporating temperature of −32°C (−26°F).
• The system is being commissioned and validated to operate in ambient temperatures of up to 35°C (95°F), with the gas cooler rated for a maximum working pressure of 100bar (1,450psi).

Quotable: “Thanks to the presence of our sister company, Beijer Ref Korea, we’re uniquely positioned to provide local support and make a tangible contribution to the advancement of refrigeration technology in Korea,” Franchin said.

“We are proud to introduce our CO₂ refrigeration technology to the Korean market.”

Alessandro Franchin, Sales Director at SCM Frigo.