A.SPIRE releases the Processes4Planet projects booklet

Post date: 
25/09/2023 - 16:28

A.SPIRE is proud to announce the launch of the booklet Innovation and Sustainability in the European Process Industries: Processes4Planet Partnership Projects 2021 and 2022. 

The booklet compiles the 27 projects funded by the European Union through the Processes4Planet co-programmed partnership (P4Planet) between 2021 and 2022, organized under 5 themes: 

  • Renewable Energy Integration: electrification, hydrogen use and flexible plants
  • Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU)
  • Materials circularity
  • Digitalisation for traceable value chains
  • Hubs4Circularity, Industrial and Urban-Industrial symbiosis

All projects contribute to the partnership's main goals of circularity, neutrality and competitiveness. Mr. Jurgen Tiedje, Head of Unit Industrial Transformation, European Commission DG Research & Innovation explained that "the Processes4Planet Partnership is, with the full support of the European Commission, making key contributions to develop the vital Process Industry solutions that Europe requires to realise the Green Deal, support a just recovery, and catalyse a sustainable, competitive European industrial strategy". Mr. Pierre Joris, A.SPIRE's President concurred by stating that the "process Industries are at the root of all supply chains and hence critical for our society. It is vital that these industries can remain competitive and strive in full harmony with our planet". 

    Processes4Planet is a co-programmed partnership under Horizon Europe. The partnership is based on a memorandum of understanding signed by the European Commission, as the public partner, and A.SPIRE aisbl, as the private partner representing the European process industries. The innovative process industries represented within A.SPIRE provide about 8.5 million jobs directly and 20 million indirectly in Europe. These process industries have a turnover of EUR 2 trillion/ year, drive innovation, and develop solutions for societal problems. They play a vital role in the European industrial landscape as they produce the materials that are used by the wider manufacturing industry to make products. In the memorandum, the Commission engaged EUR 1.3 billion in funds for partnership related calls, over the period from 2021 to 2027, to be matched by EUR 1.3 billion in investments by process industry partners from 2021 to 2030.

    The Horizon Europe contribution to projects implementing the P4Planet partnership so far amounted to about EUR 314 million: EUR 154 million allocated to 14 projects from five topics in 2021 and EUR 160 million allocated to 13 projects from five topics in 2022. Of the 27 projects implementing the P4Planet partnership selected in the 2021 and 2022 calls, the vast majority (20) are coordinated by A.SPIRE members. A total of 549 organisations are participating in these successful P4Planet project consortia of which 120 (22%) are members of A.SPIRE. SME participation is high with 27% of consortia participants being classed as small or medium sized enterprises.

    Ms. Àngels Orduña, A.SPIRE's Executive Director, concluded that "all the projects described in this brochure are the result of a huge collaborative effort that spans energy intensive industry sectors across Europe", showing both the value of cooperation and potential of the European process industries.