Carbon contracts with industrial partners can accelerate the trans-formation process
How can the industrial sector achieve the climate protection goals while remaining competitive? Carbon contracts between the German federal government and companies have the potential to be a key policy instrument to support investments in climate-friendly processes and thus accelerate the trans-formation. That is the case presented by the position paper “Carbon contracts for an accelerated industrial transformation”, published by state-based initiative IN4climate.NRW. In their paper, the authors also put forward ideas for how the contracts should be designed.
The paper’s signatories include associations of the steel, glass and cement industries as well as numerous companies from energy-intensive sectors, among them Air Liquide, Currenta, HeidelbergCement, Lanxess, Shell and Thyssenkrupp, in addition to leading research institutions, such as the Wuppertal Institute, the German Economic Institute (IW) and RWTH Aachen University. The paper was prepared by IN4climate.NRW’s working group on policy frameworks. It has been endorsed by the companies Air Liquide, Covestro, Currenta, HeidelbergCement, LANXESS, RHM, Shell, Spenner, thyssenkrupp Steel and Trimet as well as by the research institutions the German Economic Institute (IW), the Wuppertal Institute and RWTH Aachen University (Chair of Operations Management), the Federal Association of the German Glass Industry (BV Glas), the German Cement Manufacturers’ Association (VDZ) and the German Steel Federation (Wirtschaftsvereinigung Stahl). Read the original position paper and the full press release dated May 19, 2021 here.
