Glass for Europe presents its recommendations for the Clean Industrial Deal

Ahead of the publication of the Clean Industrial Deal – expected on 26 February – Glass for Europe presents its recommendations for this initiative, which should link the EU’s industrial climate transformation to ambitious competitiveness.

The Clean Industrial Deal was announced by the Commission President at the start of her second term. This initiative is meant to be the cornerstone of a new plan for Europe’s sustainable prosperity and competitiveness. It aims to support and create the right conditions for businesses to meet the EU’s common goals on decarbonisation and development. The publication of the Deal will be accompanied by, an ‘Omnibus package’ of proposals to simplify the reporting requirements of some legislation such as the Taxonomy and an Action Plan on affordable energy will be released.

Given the key role of flat glass products in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the Clean Industrial Deal must help address the challenges currently facing the flat glass sector, namely

• Record low demand for flat glass products due to the economic downturn in the construction and automotive sectors,
• High energy costs and increased operational and regulatory costs affecting the sector’s global competitiveness.

To steer the Clean Industrial Deal in the right direction and ensure that it pays sufficient attention to all energy-intensive industries, Glass for Europe has formulated recommendations around three main blocks:

• Care for industrial competitiveness to support decarbonisation efforts
• Boost strategic sectors as flat glass manufacturing with support measures
• Give sustainable construction the central role it deserves in a new industrial policy

The concrete proposals can be found in our position paper.