The first meeting of the recently created working group of the International Energy Agency (IEA) on Industrial Decarbonisation took place on April 26th 2023.
Its objectives include creating a space for collaboration and dialogue between the governments of IEA member/associate countries, as well as industry organizations and other stakeholders, focusing on key issues to accelerate decarbonization in industry. It is also intended to increase the quality and impact of the work of the IEA on this theme.
The various member countries of the IEA (such as USA, Japan, UK, European Commission, Germany, France, Australia) participate in this working group, with LNEG representing Portugal.
The topic is extremely relevant since in 2021 industry was directly responsible for the emission of circa 1/4 of global GHG – greenhouse gases emissions (this does not include indirect emissions from electricity used for industrial processes). To comply with the objectives of the Paris Agreement, direct emissions from industry must be reduced by around 95% by 2050, according to IEA studies.
In Portugal, direct emissions of national industry represented circa 15.21 Mt CO2e in 2020, i.e., roughly 29% of all national emissions in that year. Direct industry emissions include not only those associated with the consumption of fossil fuels for energy production, but also emissions from industrial processes. According to the Portuguese 2050 Roadmap for Carbon Neutrality, Portuguese industry emissions must be reduced by 73% by 2050.
LNEG will actively participate in this working group identifying decarbonization options and analyzing policies and measures supporting their adoption. We will seek to leverage synergies with the various on-going, such as the role of solar energy in industry or quantifying the role of the circular economy in decarbonization within the CO2NSTRUCT project.
