Net Zero Industry Act: Chances & Challenges for the industry
Bar ohne Namen
Entschlossen verweigert sich Savage, der Bar einen Namen zu geben. Stattdessen sind drei klassische Design-Symbole das Logo der Trinkstätte in Dalston: ein gelbes Quadrat, ein rotes Viereck, ein blauer Kreis. Am meisten wurmt den sympathischen Franzosen dabei, dass es kein Gelbes-Dreieck-Emoji gibt. Das erschwert auf komische Weise die Kommunikation. Der Instagram Account lautet: a_bar_with_shapes-for_a_name und anderenorts tauchen die Begriffe ‘Savage Bar’ oder eben ‚Bauhaus Bar‘ auf.
Für den BCB bringt Savage nun sein Barkonzept mit und mixt für uns mit Unterstützung von Russian Standard Vodka an der perfekten Bar dazu.
On April 25, the EU Parliament officially approved the "Net Zero Industry Act" to promote the production of decarbonization technologies within the EU. This decision follows the informal agreement reached by the Council and Parliament in February and aims to ensure that Europe produces 40% of the CO2-free technologies necessary to achieve climate goals by 2030.
The "Net Zero Industry Act" stipulates that the annual EU manufacturing capacity for net-zero technologies should meet at least 15% of the global demand for these technologies. Supported technologies include renewable energy technologies, nuclear energy, industrial decarbonization, grid technologies, energy storage technologies, and biotechnology.
Simplified Permitting Procedures and Fast-Track Regions
A key aspect of the legislation is the simplification of permitting procedures. Maximum timeframes for the approval of projects will be established to accelerate the expansion of net-zero technologies. Additionally, "Net-Zero Fast-Track Regions" will be established to promote industrial activities related to these technologies. In these regions, part of the environmental assessment data collection will be delegated to the member states, further speeding up processes.
Sustainability and Resilience Criteria
National support programs aimed at encouraging households and consumers to adopt technologies such as solar panels and heat pumps more quickly must meet sustainability and resilience criteria. Public procurement procedures and auctions for the deployment of renewable energy sources must also adhere to these criteria.
Financing will come from national revenues of the Emissions Trading System (ETS) and through the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) – a move towards a European Sovereignty Fund.
Impact on the Aluminium Industry
The Net Zero Industry Act offers enormous potential for the aluminium industry, but there is still room for improvement and discussion. Emanuele Manigrassi, Director Climate Change & Energy at European Aluminium explains:
The Net Zero Industry Act is a very positive step and has enormous potential for aluminium producers manufacturing aluminium-made components primarily used in the production of net zero technologies. These can be, for example, aluminium extrusion products for solar panels, cables for electrification or aluminium foil for batteries. The rules also include the possibility for simplified permitting and financing of transformative industrial technologies for decarbonisation, which need to be scaled up and more public financial support. For aluminium, these could be the inert anode, switching to hydrogen or industrial electrification for aluminium production processes. With regards to the difficulties, a lot of technical rules still need to be developed by the EU Commission, so it is difficult today to say if it will have a positive impact: the aluminium-made components that can receive support still need to be defined, and we see risks of diverging interpretation between the EU Member States and industry, which will be competing for accessing the new framework. Also, the Regulation is extremely complex to read and not user-friendly for the aluminium industry, which hasn’t yet fully grasped its potential. Finally, the financial resources are very limited at the moment. All these aspects should be clarified as soon as possible, with dedicated guidance from the EU and discussion with all producers of Net Zero Technologies.
The Net Zero Industry Act marks a significant step towards a more sustainable and self-reliant European industry. With the planned measures to promote CO2-free technologies and simplify authorisation procedures, the EU will further strengthen its position as a global pioneer in sustainable energy policy. New opportunities are opening up for the aluminium industry, but there are still challenges that need to be overcome together with the EU.
Next Steps and Background
The law was passed with 361 votes in favor, 121 against, and 45 abstentions and now needs to be formally adopted by the Council to come into force.
To achieve the European climate goals for 2030 and 2050, a significant amount of clean energy technologies will be required. Currently, Europe relies heavily on the import of these technologies, while many third countries are increasingly investing in their clean energy production capacities.
