KETs Impact: The CONSENS Project

The recent SusChem White paper ‘Impact: Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) in Horizon Europe’ included a number of success stories highlighting publicly funded innovation involving KETs and the SusChem News blog is featuring a selection of these fruitful 'SusChem inspired' initiatives.

KETs are technologies selected for their ability to address global challenges, support the development of new products, and stimulate economic growth.

Sustainable chemistry is essential to the technological advance of KETs including advanced materials, advanced manufacturing technologies, industrial biotechnology, micro and nanoelectronics, nanotechnology and photonics. SusChem's key enabling technologies provide the critical building blocks for the solutions needed to achieve a sustainable low carbon circular economy. You can find out more here.

Our first highlighted success story is on the SPIRE Horizon 2020 project CONSENS (Integrated Control and Sensing for Sustainable Operation of Flexible Intensified Processes) that has paved the way for the factory of the future by developing novel sensors and integrated process control techniques.

Sustainable operation of flexible intensified processes 

Digital technologies enable the migration from batch to flexible continuous intensified processes

Public funding facilitates the fruitful collaboration of seven companies from the chemical industry and eight excellent European partners from academia, research and technology

The future competitiveness of the European chemical industry depends on its ability to deliver high quality and high value products at competitive prices in a sustainable fashion, and to adapt quickly to changing customer needs. The use of flexible intensified continuous processes is a promising strategy towards this goal, because they give access to new and difficult to produce chemical compounds, lead to better product uniformity and reduce the consumption of raw materials and energy drastically. Moreover, it facilitates flexible and mobile production in more efficient and smaller plants and enables companies to bring new products quickly to the market. As an analysis within the former SusChem flagship project F³ Factory has shown, a fully automated process operation is a prerequisite to realise these benefits.

Therefore, the main goal of the CONSENS project was to advance the continuous production of high-value products that meet high quality demands in flexible intensified continuous plants by introducing novel digital technologies such as: new online sensors with capabilities that are not available on the market, novel closed-loop control methods for flexible operation and high-quality levels, as well as data-based and simulation-based methods to ensure optimal operation of the controlled system.

How was the breakthrough innovation achieved? 

The development work was steered by the needs of the industrial partners. Three commercially relevant case studies were selected that reflect the requirements: an intensified pharmaceutical synthesis, a continuous polymerisation process, and the continuous formulation of complex liquids. The key success factor was to consider sensors, closed-loop control, monitoring solutions, soft-sensors, and process dynamics in an integrated approach. This led to holistic control solutions that were validated very successfully in the pilot plants.

KETs

Impact
From the results achieved in the three case studies, we can conclude financial savings of EUR 265 million/year, a reduction of CO2 emissions by more than 490 000 tonnes/year, and less consumption of non-renewable raw materials of 176 000 tonnes/year in the related industries in Europe by enabling the migration from traditional batch processes to flexible intensified continuous processes.

It is expected that the market share of European chemical production plants on the global market will increase by ca. 3% due to better quality, innovative products and higher competitiveness.

More information
CONSENS – Integrated Control and Sensing for Sustainable Operation of Flexible Intensified Processes (Horizon 2020/ SPIRE GA number 636942).

Read the SusChem White Paper ‘Impact: Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) in Horizon Europe’

Register now for final CarbonNext event!

The final event for the SPIRE project CarbonNext will be held on Tuesday 17 July at the Commission’s Covent Garden Building in Brussels. This is the perfect opportunity to learn about the potential of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide as alternative carbon feedstocks for the European industry, but be quick as registration officially closes today – 6 July 2018.

The two-year SPIRE/ Horizon 2020 CSA project CarbonNext addresses alternative carbon feedstocks for the process industry with a specific focus on the use of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.

The final event will discuss the potential of these alternative feedstocks for the European industry. It will present the project’s findings and current relevant initiatives at European and Member states level.

The final conference will have speakers from industry, academia as well as policy makers from the European Commission. The main results from CarbonNext will be accompanied by presentations from industrial representatives to show the relevance and transfer of scientific results and industrial needs and to discuss ecological challenges and the economic potential behind the identified opportunities. 

Presentations include the SusChem inspired PHOENIX initiative and ‘CO2 as an alternative feedstock for sustainable chemistry’ from SusChem board member Pierre Barthelemy of Cefic.

Learn more about the whole carbon value chain – from mapping of CO/CO2 all over Europe, identified processes and products where alternative carbon sources can be used – and get in touch with an interdisciplinary network of CCU stakeholders.

The event will also provide the perfect opportunity to debate gaps and research needs in this domain, as well as timelines and roadmaps, with an eye on potential relevant activities in the framework of the upcoming Research and Innovation framework programme Horizon Europe.

If you are interested to join, please register as soon as possible!

Two Carbon Valorisation Events in July

Carbon valorisation is clearly a hot topic with a number of reports published this month and two events on CO2 valorisation/ #useCO2/ CCU events are scheduled for July.

Club CO2

The first event is an International CO2 Utilisation Symposium organised by the Club CO2 in France on Monday 2 July 2018 in Paris. Entitled An “International overview of CO2 Utilisation”, the symposium will break out into two events. The first one will be a Forum on the “International status of CCU”, which has the objective to have a wide overview of CCU developments.  The second event will be a workshop tackling the question: “Which tools to enhance CCU?”

Club CO2 is pursuing its involvement in the promotion of CO2 utilisation (CCU) as a means of reducing the carbon footprint of the economy. Recycled CO2 can be used as a raw material in the manufacture of high added value products, materials or energy.

For the Symposium agenda, click here. And you can register here. For more information contact the Club CO2 secretariat.

CarbonNext

The second meeting is the final event of the SPIRE project CarbonNext that will be held on 17 July 2018 in Brussels.

CarbonNext has been evaluating the potential use of CO2/CO as carbon-feedstock for the process industry in Europe. After two years of intensive work, the project consortium will share the major outcomes and results of the project. The CarbonNext final conference will feature speakers from industry, academia as well as policy makers from the European Commission. The main results from CarbonNext will be accompanied by presentations from industrial representatives to show the relevance and transfer of scientific results and industrial needs and to discuss ecological challenges and the economic potential behind the identified opportunities.

Learn more about the whole carbon value chain – from mapping of CO/CO2 all over Europe, identified processes and products where alternative carbon sources can be used – and get in touch with an interdisciplinary network of CCU / #useCO2 stakeholders.

A link for registration can be found on the conference webpage and registration closes on 6 July 2018.

VERAM Final Conference showcases 2050 Roadmap for Raw Materials

The Final Conference of the VERAM Horizon2020 project took place in Brussels on 17 April 2018. This project brought together diverse stakeholders – including five European Technology Platforms (ETPs): Sustainable Minerals Resources, Forest, Construction, Sustainable Chemistry and Advanced Materials – to produce a medium-term (2030) Vision and a longer-term (2050) Strategic Research and Innovation Roadmap for raw materials. The conference discussed the work of the project, its methodologies and its results including the report ‘Research and Innovation Roadmap: A Sustainable and Competitive Future for European Raw Materials’.

The VERAM approach covered all raw materials: both the biotic (for example forestry & natural rubber) value chain and the metal, minerals and aggregates value chain. It looked to reinforce and underpin greater sustainability, economic resilience and technology leadership in the EU. The Vision 2030-2050 sees increased EU production to ensure a base load supply of materials, development of globally competitive sustainable technologies, investment both in and outside Europe to ensure access to resources, the creation of new jobs across the raw materials sector, and contributing to the replacement of jobs lost in other parts of the economy and through automation. It was clear that there will remain a need for primary material resources despite the expected transition to a more circular economy.

  

Four priorities, 178 action areas

Four priority areas were identified and form the core of the Roadmap considerations:

1. Fostering a sustainable supply of raw materials to feed new and existing value chains
2. Resource-efficient processing for raw materials
3. Raw materials in new products and applications, and
4. Closing material loops by maximising the recycling of products, buildings and infrastructure.

The VERAM roadmap includes analysis of the five ETPs’ Strategic Innovation and Research Agendas (SIRAs), the European Innovation Partnership (EIP) on Raw Materials SIRA, public consultations and workshops.

The project also had established an inventory of current Member State, EU and global raw materials policies and R&D funding calls and had surveyed EU Member State funding bodies with 13 Member States providing insights. The inventory database is available on the VERAM web portal.

This highly inclusive process resulted in the formulation of some 178 Research & Innovation Areas (RIAs) across the four identified priorities. Remarkably within the RIAs over 50% overlapped between the two categories of raw materials: biotic on one side and metals, minerals and aggregates on the other side.

Multiple speakers at the final conference applauded the work of the project; not least the integration of diverse input from such a wide range of major stakeholder highlighting the importance of raw materials issues to European competitiveness, jobs and growth. However, it was also noted that the sectors needed to do more to integrate societal interests.

This JRC video shows how lack of raw materials could inhibit the low carbon economy.

Wide dissemination

It is now vital that the results of the project are disseminated as widely as possible to ensure the recommendations and ideas are brought to fruition as soon as possible. The report will be presented to funding authorities at European, national and regional levels, including initiatives such as the BioBased Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU) and the Sustainable Process Industries for Resource and Energy efficiency (SPIRE) PPP, to ensure inclusion of VERAM ideas in forthcoming research and innovation calls.

You can download the VERAM Final Report here.

Making EU industry less energy intensive and more competitive

The Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan) Working Group 6 on Energy Efficiency in Industry is organising a Workshop on “Continuing efforts to make EU industry less energy intensive and more competitive” on 27 and 28 June 2018 in Brussels.

The Implementation Plan of the SET Plan Action 6 on "Continuing efforts to make EU industry less energy intensive and more competitive" was endorsed by the SET Plan Steering Group on 29 September 2017.  It describes the future activities that will contribute to reaching the targets defined earlier in the Declaration of Intent.

The Cooperation Workshop in June aims to contribute to the realisation of the Implementation Plan by enhancing cooperation between national programmes and further developing the activities into concrete projects.

Cooperative model

Country representatives will meet and discuss existing forms of cooperation, not necessarily in the field of energy efficiency in industry, to identify the best cooperation model(s) for the future. The identified cooperation models will then be shared with the full workshop audience in relation to Action 6 priorities.

In addition, parallel brokerage sessions, open to country representatives and stakeholders, will focus on further developing the activities into potential cooperative projects: presenting ideas of projects, looking for possible cross-border cooperation between similar and/or complementary ideas, and identifying specific actors and potential financing sources for collaborative projects.

To ensure effective and efficient workshop, the number of attendees for the workshop will be limited to 150 persons maximum. In particular, stakeholders will be invited to submit "idea(s) for projects" (or draft projects) before the workshop. In the case of over-registration, priority will be given to stakeholders who have submitted a project.

Plan and programme

Details of the Implementation Plan and the Workshop Programme, including its rationale and objectives, who should attend and why, plus practical information on the organisation of the sessions and a preliminary agenda can be found here.

Registration and the call for "Project ideas" is now open, but will close at the end of April. Confirmation of participation will be announced at the end of May.

Re-finding Industry’s role in FP9, KETs and PPPs

At the EU Industry Days event on 23 February 2018 European Commissioner Carlos Moedas (right) launched the conference report ‘Re-Finding Industry’ from the High-Level Strategy Group on Industrial Technologies. His speech outlined the  Group's preliminary findings on Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) strategy, their role in a future emboldened European innovation landscape, and showed close alignment with SusChem thinking on KETs, PPPs and the forthcoming European Research and Innovation framework programme FP9.

Commissioner Moedas described three interrelated drivers of a new momentum for innovation in Europe:

• Science to develop the new ideas and technologies of the future
• Start-ups and SMEs to develop the breakthrough innovations, combining technologies and new business models, and 
• Industry to scale up innovations and create economic and social impact.

All three components required support for success and he highlighted industry’s significant involvement in Horizon 2020 that represented an investment of over EUR 20 billion directly in industry.

PPPs 
“Nine out of ten of the collaborative projects [in Horizon 2020] include at least one private sector partner,” he said. “And there are two particular ways we work with industry: the so-called PPPs and the KETs.”

The Commissioner also sees the Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), such as SusChem and the SusChem inspired programmes under SPIRE and BBI JU, as great successes that need to be taken forward incorporating learning from the experience in Horizon 2020.

He stated a need to simplify the array of different public-private instruments and make them more open both to new participants and new funders such as Member States and private foundations. He also saw the need for PPPs to be more flexible and able to adapt to both current and future needs.

SusChem has a long tradition of working closely with Member States through its network of National Technology Platforms and the recent PHEONIX initiative for CO2 valorisation includes three Members States working with the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) to develop and implement Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU/ #useCO2) technologies.

KETs
Commissioner Moedas sees KETs as another essential building blocks for innovation success. “With them, we have the power to create products that place us at the forefront of an advanced economy,” he said. “And they underpin our global leadership in so many of our industries. Their importance cannot be understated.”

He thanked the High-Level Strategy Group on Industrial Technologies, chaired by Jürgen Rüttgers, for their preliminary report ‘Re-finding Industry’ that advises the simplification and merger of some of the existing KETs and two new KET topics: artificial intelligence, and security and connectivity.

The group has been tasked to review the European strategy on KETs and to recommend how to best place them in the forthcoming mission-oriented research and innovation programme. The group's final report is expected to be published in April 2018.

The report states that Europe’s competitiveness lies in its capacity to create balanced, cohesive, well educated, healthy and protected societies. In this context, KETs must contribute to improving peoples’ lives, fighting poverty and correcting inequalities and, therefore, a new, broader definition for KETs is suggested based on four criteria: impact, relevance, key capacity, and enabling power.

In addition to the two new topics, four of the six KETs are recommended to be merged into two broader categories (materials and nanotechnology, photonics and micro and nano-electronics) and the KET ‘biotechnology’ topic should be broadened to ‘Life Sciences technologies’.

The report also investigates the potential links between KETs and mission-orientated research (see above) as advocated as a core element of FP9 and identifies 14 possible mission topics including ‘Industry renewal’, ‘Circular economy – shift to de-production and re-production’, ‘Carbon re-use - from climate killer to industry asset’, and ‘Bio manufacturing – bringing life to manufacturing’ all of potential interest to SusChem stakeholders.

SusChem view
The HLG report broadly corresponds with SusChem thinking on KETs.

SusChem outlined its position on KETs in a recent paper. The document describes what can be achieved by KETs and details the major technology developments and initiatives needed to:

• Create Advanced Materials for use in energy efficiency, renewable electricity production and energy storage, or smart functionalities responding to stimuli
• Develop Advanced Process Technologies, including Industrial Biotechnology, for more sustainable production including through utilisation of alternative carbon feedstock and alternative energy sources.
• Leverage Digital Technologies for use in advanced process control and materials modelling, to enable disruptive business models and to create new customer experiences.

The paper calls for on the European Commission to ensure strong support for KETs in the next Framework Funding Programme. You can read the full SusChem position paper here.

INSPIREWATER: Making Every Drop Count

The SPIRE Horizon 2020 project INSPIREWATER is working to enable process industry companies to implement sustainable water treatment solutions as part of a corporate sustainability strategy. This will be achieved via the development, demonstration and exploitation of innovative, eco-efficient technologies that support sustainable water resources management. The overall goal of the project is to reduce wastewater so that there is zero discharge into the environment and to re-use the treated wastewater.

While 70 % of the earth’s surface is covered in water, less than 1 % is freshwater available for use.  With growing pressures on this finite natural resource, there’s a critical need for more innovative water management solutions.

Water is one of SusChem's innovation priority areas and the platform supports industry involvement in a portfolio of EU funded projects working to improve water and wastewater management including those managed by SPIRE as an entity nurtured and established through SusChem actions. 

In Tarragona, Spain, a region that’s faced a critical water shortage, chemical company Clariant is part of an innovative project to test out sustainable wastewater solutions that can eventually be applied to sectors across the globe. The INSPIREWATER (Innovative Solutions in the Process Industry for next generation Resource Efficient Water management) project brings together eleven industrial and scientific partners working in sectors such as steel and paper. Their goal for 2025 is to reduce current freshwater consumption by 35 % and wastewater emissions by 40 %.

INSPIREWATER technologies aim to increase water and resource efficiency by 20-30 % across the process industry. The project will focus initially on the steel and chemical industries, with the long-term goal of applying the technologies throughout process industry sectors for maximum impact.

The project includes partners representing the steel and chemical industries, technology and innovation SME’s, research organisations and dissemination and exploitation experts. The collaboration of these partners forms an exceptional team to deliver quality innovation and striking impact in the process industry. The emphasis on deployment and impact within the project reflects the target set by SPIRE's research and innovation strategy, the European Innovation Partnership (EIP) on ‘Water’ and the EU Commission’s Roadmap on Resource efficiency. In addition, the project will implement European directives and policies in Water Management.

New Tech in an Ancient Port

In recent years, the ancient port city of Tarragona and its surrounding province have dealt with water scarcity issues due to declining summer rainfalls and increased water demand from industry and tourism. The region is also home to a cluster of chemical companies including Clariant’s speciality chemicals facility.

As the representative of the chemical industry within INSPIREWATER, Clariant’s Tarragona site is testing out an innovative multi-membrane technology for waste water treatment demonstrated as an “end-of-pipe” solution, which filters contaminants from water before it can be recycled or reintroduced into the environment. Under current methods, wastewater is purified using “reverse osmosis,” a process that requires hydraulic pressure and energy inputs. The multi-membrane technology currently being tested combines the standard osmosis process with a variety of energy-efficient technologies, so that wastewater can more efficiently pass through membranes to be purified.

Other technologies being piloted by INSPIREWATER will help conserve water across the production life cycle. The end goal is to reduce wastewater so that there is zero discharge into the environment and to re-use the treated wastewater. “To Clariant, the best wastewater is wastewater that barely exists,” says Friedhelm Zorn, Head of Competence Centre Environmental Technologies at Clariant.

Catalyst technology

Within the INSPIREWATER project there are three innovative technologies for sustainable water treatment being developed and tested. One is catalyst technology being developed by MOL Katalysatortechnik GmbH.

The MOL®LIK Catalyst reduces chemical dosage, minimises maintenance, optimises energy demand and saves money. The technology is being evaluated as part of the large-scale demonstration at Clariant.

RoadToBio: Guiding the EU Chemical Industry towards the Bioeconomy

How can the chemical industry in Europe meet the challenges of global markets while at the same time becoming more sustainable? RoadToBio is an EU-funded project under Horizon 2020 that aims to pave the way for the European chemical industry to embrace a higher biobased portfolio and more competitive success. Despite considerable efforts over the past few years, the production and application of biobased chemicals is still limited. The roadmap developed in RoadToBio will specify the benefits for the chemical industry of moving from a fossil-based industry towards the bioeconomy to meet the societal needs of 2030.

Today (6 July) the project’s first expert workshop is taking place in Brussels to initiate a discussion on the biobased ‘sweet spots for the chemical industry and develop a list of criteria for biobased products and/ or the shift towards a bioeconomy in the chemical sector from the viewpoint of diverse stakeholders.

The results of the project, a Coordination and Support Action (CSA), first announced in the BBI JU 2016 work programme, will be of critical interest to SusChem stakeholders. The SusChem Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA) focuses on a sustainable and inclusive bioeconomy as a priority and the outcomes of the project will inform future revisions of the SusChem SIRA.

The roadmap will also inform future work programmes for the BBI JU and SPIRE PPP, both SusChem inspired initiatives, and where SusChem takes role in coordinating work programmes and identifying synergies.

The roadmap

The roadmap will consist of two main components: an analysis of the most promising opportunities (the ‘sweet spots’) for the chemical industry to increase its biobased portfolio, and a strategy, action plan and engagement guide to overcome the existing and anticipated barriers and hurdles.

The analytical part of the project will take into account feedstock, technologies and markets as well as regulatory issues, societal needs, consumer acceptance and communication. Business cases will be explored that cover new feedstock for the chemical industry, new intermediates for and by the chemical industry, as well as new end-products.

The business cases will be analysed in detail to understand the market potential, the different up- and downstream actors in the value chain as well as the benefits for society based on techno-economic and life cycle assessments.

30% biobased share

The outcomes of the analysis will be used to formulate a strategy, action plan and engagement guide for the chemical industry. They will describe the actions that need to be taken by all stakeholders to achieve the objective of a 30% share of biobased products in the chemical industry by 2030.

To maintain a realistic perspective and gain the support and commitment of the key players, representatives of the European chemical industry and other stakeholders will be involved in the project from the very beginning, providing input and feedback.

This means the roadmap will be developed in consultation with stakeholders, and disseminated to a wide audience. Furthermore, RoadToBio will bring together different parts of the chemical industry, society, and governing bodies in order to start a dialogue and to create a platform where this action plan can unfold to its full potential.

The consortium of this two-year project that started in May 2017 consists of SusChem founding member DECHEMA eV., BTG Biomass Technology Group BV, E4tech (UK) Ltd., and the nova-Institut.

Registration for SusChem Stakeholder event 2017 is open!

Our most influential annual event – the SusChem Stakeholder event – is now open for registration. The 2017 event takes place on 8 June at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Brussels and will bring together global audiences, senior players from the chemical industry, academia, research technology organisations (RTOs) and EU institutions to address common challenges and debate priorities crucial to the sustainability of the European chemical and biotechnology innovation sectors. This year’s theme is ‘Accelerating innovation and impact in Europe: Shaping expectations and priorities for the next EU Framework Programme’.

As usual the annual stakeholder event is free to SusChem members so why not register now!

In the morning plenary presentations will be given by Peter Droell, Director at DG Research and Innovation for Industrial Technologies and Dr. Klaus Sommer, Chairman of the SusChem Board and the SusChem communications team will also present the SusChem rebranding project.

Breakout sessions

Participants will then split into three parallel breakout workshops. There will be two sessions held either side of the morning coffee break and delegates will be asked to select two of the three topics at registration.

The three breakout session topics are:

• Defining success factors for EU funded projects to optimise innovation impact and value for Europe How can we maximise the market uptake and impact of EU funded project results by examining success learnings from projects? Exemplary projects will share relevant success factors and critical learnings and all stakeholders will have an opportunity to share their views on collaborative projects and how they can be designed to optimise impact.
• SME’s as a driver of the EU innovation ecosystems: How can we stimulate market-creating innovation through SME funding? Chemical and biotechnology SMEs are key enablers of innovation. This breakout session will try to identify the right mechanisms and ways to enhance their engagement in European public funding.  The session will examine current policies drivers, funding requirements and barriers to the commercialisation of SME innovation.
• Shaping funding instruments to accelerate innovation and competitiveness in Europe Competitiveness relies on the capacity to create added value.  In this breakout session we will examine the strengths and weaknesses of the design and structure of EU innovation funding instruments by sharing experiences with Horizon 2020. Together, we will identify a short list of ideas and recommendations for the EU Commission in the evolution and design of the next EU Framework Programme.

FP9 debate

After lunch SusChem stakeholders will receive updates from our National Research Platform (NTP) network and feedback from the breakout sessions before a high-level panel discussion that will examine how to accelerate innovation and deliver impact in the upcoming Framework Funding Programme (FP9).

The panel will be moderated by Cefic Director General Marco Mensink and will feature contributions from Prof. Michael Matlosz, President and Chief Executive Officer of the French National Research Agency (ANR), Cosimo Franco, CEO of Endura, Angels Orduña, the SPIRE PPP Executive Director, Ulrich Kuesthardt, SusChem Board Member and CIO at Evonik, and Kurt Vandenberghe, Director for Policy Development and Coordination at DG Research and Innovation.

Following a summing up of the day’s activities and outcomes, the SusChem Stakeholder event 2017 will conclude – as ever – with a networking cocktail reception.

For more details, please visit the event website or register direct by clicking here. In the meantime why not catch up with the highlights of the 2016 SusChem Stakeholder event!

SusChem responds to Horizon 2020 Interim Consultation

SusChem has submitted a position paper and a completed questionnaire to the Horizon 2020 Interim consultation. The results of the consultation will feed into planning for Horizon 2020’s successor programme (currently with the working title ‘FP9’) for 2021 and beyond. The Commission will publish a summary of views from the consultation by mid-2017.

The SusChem position paper has three key messages for the Commission:

PPPs are important for impact

The paper states one of the main aspects in Horizon 2020 is the drive for Innovation. It notes that Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), such as SPIRE and BBI, are important instruments that promote competitiveness, participation of partners along the value chain and foster a networking balance between SMEs and large industries. SusChem believes that this combination of SMEs, public partners and large companies is critical to cross the “technology valley of death” and this combination should be targeted as a long term committed initiative for Horizon 2020 and its successors.

Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) are key

The chemical industry provides sustainable and innovative solutions (KETs) that address the Societal Challenges identified by the European Commission under Horizon 2020. SusChem believes that innovative technologies and processes are the way to overcome the growth stagnation of European Industry. The platform thinks that National Technology Platforms (NTPs) have a fundamental role positioning their geographical strengths and needs to build a strong European technological and political network.

Project Success Rates can be improved

SusChem notes the almost halving of the success rate for project proposals in Horizon 2020 compared to FP7. SusChem believes this can be improved by more accurate call definitions with funding focused on a short list of major breakthrough innovation topics, with higher funding for more high quality projects. More precise call definitions will also enable better quality reviews of proposals.  

In addition the SusChem Position Paper highlights support for the two-stage call approach in Horizon 2020 and but highlights intellectual property (IP) concerns with the move to an Open Science approach as too hasty publications may hinder IP protection and therefore value creation.

The paper also stresses the importance of attracting a mix of SMEs and large industries to participate in Horizon 2020 and its successors seeking a continuation of the balance of public funding for SMEs and large chemical companies that is crucial to improve competitiveness in Europe.  

The paper argues that Improved Time to Grant for project funding is critical to maintain and increase industrial participation in Horizon 2020. In addition appropriate funding levels for projects is required with higher funding needed in particular to bridge upfront technologies and processes over the ‘valley of death’. Higher funding for innovation projects (TRL 6-8), demonstration and flagship actions is necessary. The paper also highlights that administrative costs for project consortia formation have increased in Horizon 2020.

SusChem recommends
SusChem’s position paper includes with the following specific recommendations:

• A substantial coverage of topics in lower TRLs (Technical Readiness Level 3 – 5) and few topics at demonstration and pilot levels (TRL > 7) with appropriate levels of funding is required.
• Strengthen the Public Private Partnership concept as a long term committed initiative; increase their attractiveness for large industry by higher funding for more flagship-oriented projects.
• Focus the Horizon 2020 programme on fewer/bigger topics related to Europe’s strengths that can receive more funding to enable mission focused Flagship Project(s) for the chemical industry.
• Focus on fewer topics but fund at least four high quality proposals, allowing a holistic approach for a specific scientific challenge.
• To achieve a better participation balance in Horizon 2020 between large industries, SMEs, academia, and Member States (EU-13 and new Member States) an improvement of call topic selection is strongly required.
• Earlier publication of call topics allowing possible partners to align themselves with their business planning is desirable
• All the calls for proposals should be based on a two-stage process: this would allow a simplification of the workload of the involved consortia. Criteria: (i) the time for evaluation of the first stage should be faster with a shorter deadline between stages one and two; (ii) the coherence between the evaluations in both phases can be improved.
• Better and more precise feedback for rejected projects is highly desirable.
• Horizon 2020 is an important R&I funding mechanism, but overall may represent only a portion of total R&I funding/support available in the EU through other programmes and/or member state instruments. A better integration between different funding mechanisms is highly desirable.
• High-level support in the Member States and the European Parliament is required to achieve the rejuvenation of the process industry in Europe.

SusChem impact
The SusChem Position Paper concludes by discussing the preliminary impact of selected FP7 and Horizon 2020 projects by highlighting a range of SusChem inspired projects in five relevant fields covering sustainable chemistry contributions in process industries, circular economy, and energy efficiency amongst others. The fields highlighted are:

• Water Management 
• Catalysis and Processes
• ICT/Digitisation and Processes
• Sustainable Bioeconomy
• Materials for Energy

You can download the full SusChem Position Paper here and SusChem’s completed questionnaire here. For more information on SusChem activities visit the SusChem website or email the SusChem secretariat.

2016 SusChem End of Year Message

Dear colleagues and members of the SusChem community,

The year 2016 represented a significant milestone for SusChem. Together we defined five main priority areas for our research and innovation activities in sustainable chemistry -  Sustainable bio-economy, ICT for processes, Water, Catalysis and Processes, and Materials for Energy  -  and developed a comprehensive plan for following up other important topics.

During the year a number of SusChem inspired projects delivered significant results, most notably the E4Water project, that demonstrated the very tangible impact of our research and innovation agenda. 2016 also saw SusChem act to facilitate enhanced collaboration and cooperation between the two SusChem inspired Public Private Partnerships: the BBI Joint Undertaking and SPIRE.

We successfully held our annual Stakeholder event in June, as usual in Brussels, and a very successful Brokerage event in Seville in September during the 6th European Chemical Congress. New Working Groups were created and substantial and significant input, based on the needs of our sector, was gathered, delivered to the European Commission and well received by them. Moreover, our network of National Technology Platforms expanded to include a record number of fourteen Member States.

Towards the end of the year we launched our new SusChem identity at a reception in the European Parliament. This rebranding campaign will continue into 2017 including a revision of the SusChem website.

But above all, the greatest success factor for SusChem in 2016 was YOU! Your commitment, trust and involvement strengthened SusChem and motivated the platform in its mission to represent the significant sustainable chemistry research and innovation efforts of the Chemical Industry within the chemical science community, to the European Institutions, and beyond.

On behalf of the SusChem Board and the SusChem secretariat, I would like to thank you for your continuing engagement and we wish you all very happy and relaxing holidays and a healthy, happy and “sustainable” New Year. 2017 will be another important year for SusChem and we look forward to working with you on new SusChem inspired initiatives over the next 12 months.

Best wishes,

Dr Klaus H. Sommer
Chairman of the SusChem Board

SusChem 2016 Brokerage in Seville breaks records!

The SusChem 2016 Brokerage event took place in Seville on 13 September and was attended by some 100 participants including SusChem Board Member Fernando Moreno who presented the introduction to the event and Soren Bowadt Programme Officer at DG Research and Innovation who is SusChem’s primary contact in the Commission. At the start of the Project Ideas Session Anne Chloe Devic, the Coordinator for SusChem National Technology Platforms, welcomed the speakers to the first SusChem European brokerage event ever organised outside of Brussels. 

The Brokerage event was hosted in Spain thanks to SusChem Spain, in conjunction with one of the biggest events of the year for the chemical community: the Sixth European Chemistry Congress. Our thanks to Cristina Gonzalez, the secretary of SusChem Spain, who was the prime mover in organising the event and acted as the chair of the meeting.

In the opening presentation, Fernando Moreno stressed the importance of such brokerage events and recalled the essential role that SMEs are playing in the formation of new projects. Soren Bowadt reviewed the policy context for the Nanotechnologies, Advanced Materials, Advanced Manufacturing and Processing, and Biotechnology (NMBP) programme in Horizon 2020 and stressed the importance of the SPIRE and BBI PPPs, with which SusChem is very much aligned.

He made an overview of those projects that succeeded in obtaining grants in the 2014-2015 calls, gave an indicative overview of funding by the Commission for the last remaining years of Horizon 2020 and then detailed the 2017 calls, which were the main subject of the event. Soren also gave some hints on how to prepare a good project proposal.

Record-breaking

The event continued with the presentation of 22 proposals, out of which 19 were from companies - including from 13 SMEs. This is a record in terms of the proportion of industrial participation and specifically participation by SMEs.

Another record that was broken at the event was the number of bilateral meetings requested on the Connexme application, which reached 100!

And last but not least, a lively speed-dating session took place that continued right up to the closing of the event. We hope that the event will lead to the birth of many new and successful projects!

You can now download all the authorised presentations from the event, including the ideas presentations, here.

#useCO2: Economics and Valorisation

Carbon Dioxide Utilisation (CDU) is a topic of growing interest around the world and as reported earlier a CO2 Forum panel on 'Impacts, Policies and Strategies of CDU' took place on September 15 in conjunction with the four-day International Conference on Carbon Dioxide Utilisation (ICCDU) in Sheffield, UK.  The ICCDU is now organised as an annual event in response to the growing interest CDU in the academic community. ICCDU 2017 will take place in Shanghai. The CO2 Forum enjoyed a high level of representation from industry with presentations and participation in the debates from companies including Covestro, Carbon8, Total, 3M, and Sunfire.

The high level of debate was reinforced by the presence of delegates from the IEA and IASS Postdam. In addition several partners from the SusChem supported SCOT project were also present and discussed the conclusions and recommendations of their project.

This year, the CO2 Forum was truly international with the participation of a some US delegates sharing views and highlighting additional and currently less known up scaling projects such as Skyonic in the US and CarbFix in Iceland.

CDU (or #useCO2) approaches are a medium to long-term research and innovation priority of SusChem and are featured in the SusChem Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA). SusChem inspired #useCO2 calls have been included in Horizon 2020 work programmes including those developed through the SPIRE PPP such as SPIRE calls 05-2016 and 08-2017.

Economic issues
Although more #useCO2 projects are being announced, the economics of CO2 valorisation remains a significant issue in the current conditions. More incentives and support schemes are needed to support technology development and demonstration of CDU technologies at the large scale.

Pierre Barthelemy, Executive Director Research and Innovation at Cefic participated in a panel debate at the CO2 Forum and highlighted the need for support across all Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs), in particular financial support is needed beyond TRL 7 (defined as 'system prototype demonstration in operational environment' under Horizon 2020). He also called for an appropriate regulatory framework that supports #useCO2 business cases.

Inevitably the discussion at the CO2 Forum also included the potential for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), however the slow development of this technology was highlighted. By 2025, CCS projects currently in the pipeline could capture only 10% of what is required to support the two degree scenario (2DS) discussed at COP21 in Paris. Clearly no technological option should be rejected and more innovation is needed to meet the challenge of climate change.

Club CO2 seminar

The technical and economic issues around #useCO2 projects will also be the subject of the second CO2 reuse seminar organised by ClubCO2 with the support of ADEME and the CO2Forum. This event takes place on 21 October 2016 in Lyon, France and will focus on the question: What are the economic and environmental benefits of CO2 reuse? The first ClubCO2 seminar was organised in Le Havre in May 2015, Club CO2.

The morning session (to be conducted in English) will present the current position and prospects for the policy-making, regulatory and economic aspects of CO2 reuse and analyses of the economic and environmental benefits of different CO2 conversion processes, based on industrial applications.

The afternoon parallel expert sessions will be organised in English and French speaking workshops with the aim of discussing and highlighting the conditions for the successful emergence of CO2 transformation technologies.

You can find more information about the Club CO2 seminar here and registration for the event can be found here.

The ADEME (French Environment and Energy Management Agency) founded Club CO2 in 2002 with the support of the IFP Energies Nouvelles (IFPEN - formerly French Petroleum Institute) and BRGM (Bureau of Geological and Mineral Research). Since 19 March 2016, Club CO2 has been a non-profit association registered under French law to bring together industry and research organisations in this area.

Solar-Driven Chemistry: A New Paradigm?

At present, despite advances in the production and diversity of biobased products and the increasing use of renewable energy sources, the chemical industry depends largely on fossil carbon resources for its main energy source and feedstock. A new White Paper launched by EuCheMS and DFG on 12 September at the 6th European Chemical Congress shows how it could be possible to drive chemical reactions using the energy of the sun and help guarantee a sustainable future.

This vision of solar-driven chemistry offers a long-term innovative scientific and technological endeavour to achieve sustainable chemical production through “recycling” carbon by converting CO2 into chemicals, materials and fuels.

Such #useCO2 approaches are also a medium to long-term research and innovation priority of SusChem and are featured in the SusChem Strategic Innovation and Research Agenda (SIRA). SusChem inspired #useCO2 calls have been included in Horizon 2020 work programmes including those developed through the SPIRE PPP such as SPIRE calls 05-2016 and 08-2017.

The report was published in the same week as the 14th International Conference on Carbon Dioxide Utilization (CDU) was being held at the University of Sheffield in the UK. Today (15 September) on the final day of the conference Pierre Barthélemy, Executive Director, Research and Innovation at Cefic, will contribute to a CO2 Forum panel on 'Impacts, Policies And Strategies of CDU'. He will argue that beyond research and innovation challenges successful industrial deployment of #useCO2 technologies will require high levels of industrial symbiosis, significant investment and the right policy framework to deliver the desired impact.

Solar vision

The 'Solar-Driven Chemistry: A Vision for Sustainable Chemistry Production' paper describes how the primary feedstocks for solar-driven chemistry are water, nitrogen and carbon dioxide, while the main products would be molecular hydrogen and a series of carbon-based chemical compounds obtained through the simultaneous reduction of CO2.

Such solar-driven chemistry is a visionary concept, for which many scientific and technical problems remain to be solved. Technology transfer from fundamental chemical research to industrial applications can take decades, however, intermediate short- and medium-term objectives, which are necessary to enable the long-term goal, can also generate new knowledge, which will provide wider benefits to society and an improvement to industrial competitiveness, claims the paper.

Radical paradigm

The paper claims that solar-driven chemistry could be a radical paradigm shift in chemical production, which could have a high, positive impact on the competitiveness and sustainability of European industry. It has the potential to contribute significantly to a fossil-independent supply of feedstock for the chemical industry and to greener fuels for all applications. Solar-driven chemistry can create knowledge-driven competitiveness for Europe’s industrial production, while preserving jobs and the environment.

In order to accomplish this ambitious goal, a broad and inclusive action driven by the chemical science community is needed that requires a large integrated and synergistic approach covering catalysis, electrochemistry, photochemistry, nanosciences, in concert with semiconductor physics, engineering, biosciences and social sciences. Implementation of solar-driven chemistry is a big challenge, but one that could have a high impact for future generations, not only in science, industry and economy, but also within society as a whole, the paper concludes.

More information

The document is based on the presentations from a brainstorming workshop on ‘Solar-driven Chemistry’ that took place on 9 October 2015 in Berlin jointly organised by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) and the European Association of Chemical and Molecular Sciences (EuCheMS).

DFG is the self-governing organisation for funding science and research in Germany whose membership includes German research universities, non-university research institutions, scientific associations and the Academies of Science and the Humanities.

EuCheMS aims to nurture a platform for scientific discussion and to provide a single, unbiased European voice on key policy issues in chemistry and related fields.

Horizon 2020: 2017 work programme announced!

This week (25 July) the European Commission unveiled its updated Horizon 2020 work programme for 2017. The packages announced by the Commission confirmed that in 2017 Horizon 2020 will support a range of SusChem relevant initiatives including Industry 2020 in the Circular Economy (€325 million) to develop strong and sustainable economies; Green Vehicles (€133 million); and Smart and Sustainable Cities (€115 million) to better integrate environmental, transport, energy and digital networks in the EU's urban environments.

Don’t forget you can find out more – and start building your project consortia for 2017 Horizon 2020 calls – at the SusChem Brokerage event on Tuesday 13 September in Seville.

In addition it was announced by Commissioner Moedas that for 2017 open research data will be introduced as the ‘norm’ for all new Horizon 2020 calls: projects funded under the programme will be required to offer free online access to all scientific data produced. The Commission believes that this move will boost competitiveness by accelerating innovation and collaboration, improving transparency, and avoiding duplication of efforts.

However, the Commission is aware that there are cases where research data cannot be open. Projects therefore have the possibility to opt out of the scheme, provided a valid justification is given such as protection of intellectual property.

A further new element in Horizon 2020 will be the use of Data Management Plans (DMPs), detailing what data the project will generate, whether and how it will be made accessible for verification and re-use, and how it will be curated and preserved. The use of a DMP is required for projects participating in the Open Research Data Pilot. Other projects are invited to submit a DMP if relevant for their planned research but only funded projects are required to submit a DMP.

See an infographic on how this will work in practice here, find out more on Open Research Data here and more on the proposals for Horizon 2020 Data Management here.

2017 key priorities

The Commission wants the 2017 Horizon 2020 work programme update to support competitiveness through open science. The calls and other actions under the current work programme updates have a budget of €8.5 billion. All the calls and related information are published on a single portal and build on the success of Horizon 2020 to date.

The Horizon 2020 Work Programme is directly aligned with the agenda of the Commission. It will contribute to the Jobs, Growth and Investment Package helping to strengthen Europe’s global competitiveness through innovation to create new and sustainable jobs and promote growth.

The 2017 announcement highlighted six priorities:

• A new Boost for Jobs, Growth and Investment - Research and innovation investments will cover both the immediate need to engage the re-industrialisation of Europe as well as the longer-term objective of building solid knowledge needed for the next wave of innovative breakthroughs. This includes around €1.45 billion of funding for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including €438 million through a dedicated instrument which should benefit over 1 000 highly innovative SMEs.
• A Stronger Global Actor, Towards a New Policy on Migration, and an Area of Justice and Fundamental Rights Based on Mutual Trust – this demonstrates the flexibility of Horizon 2020 to address topical issues including an €11 million package of migration actions and €49 million to assist research on the Fight against crime and terrorism. 
• A Resilient Energy Union with a Forward-Looking Climate Change Policy – to ensure that Europe has secure, affordable and climate-friendly energy including initiatives to close the water cycle gap, by reconciling water supply and demand in both quantitative and qualitative terms with a budget of €10 million in the 'Greening the economy' call and research to support the future development of a production base for next generation Lithium battery cells or post-lithium battery cells under the Green Vehicles cPPP.  In total the 2017 energy calls dedicate more than €84 million for developing energy storage systems improving the flexibility of the energy grid to integrate an increasing share of renewables.
• A Deeper and Fairer Internal Market with a Strengthened Industrial Base – this priority includes a call on Industry 2020 in the Circular Economy (€225 million) which will contribute to boosting and renewing Europe's industrial capacities while ensuring sustainability and a call on personalised medicine (€332 million).
• A Connected Digital Single Market – to address existing barriers that access and providing innovative digital solutions including in electronics, computing, networking, robotics, photonics and cybersecurity.
• Cross-cutting and other features - supporting a range of cross-cutting initiatives in 2017 including Industry 2020 in the Circular Economy (€325 million) and Smart and Sustainable Cities (€115 million).

Research Integrity

The EU's Horizon 2020 research funding programme has now a more specific set of rules on research integrity to be followed by beneficiaries. The revamped model agreement provides more clarity on previously general requirements contained in Article 34 of the agreement. The article now explicitly calls for beneficiaries to respect the principles of honesty, reliability, objectivity, impartiality, open communication, duty of care, and fairness and responsibility for future science generations.

The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity has recently been revised in a process led by All European Academies (ALLEA), and once updated, in January 2017, the new code together with the revised Article 34 will constitute an effective mechanism to promote adherence to the highest standards of research integrity across Europe.

European Parliament Safeguards Horizon 2020 Funding

Meanwhile earlier this month the European Parliament adopted an own-initiative report that calls on the Commission and the European Council to support the report’s proposal to safeguard Europe’s research and innovation budget in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).

In its report, the European Parliament “regrets that the portion of the EU budget dedicated to research and innovation has often been the first to be affected by any cuts in the budget” and demands an increase to the ceiling of the competitiveness heading of the MFF in order to compensate for European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) related cuts.

More information

More details on the work programme update are available at here and on the Horizon 2020 website and Participant portal.

The SusChem Brokerage event will also outline SusChem relevant work package details and help participants to find project partners and start their Horizon 2020 journey! Register today! 

SPIRE Project Brochures Online

The Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Efficiency (SPIRE) PPP has just published two brochures cataloguing the research and innovation projects established under its calls in 2014 and 2015. The two brochures concisely outline the aims of each project and the concepts being used to implement it. A link to each project’s website is also included. 

The 2014 Project Brochure covers the following calls and associated projects:

SPIRE 1 – 2014 on ‘Integrated Process Control’

• RECOBA - Cross-sectorial real-time sensing, advanced control and optimisation of batch processes saving energy and raw materials 
• DISIRE - Integrated Process Control based on Distributed In-Situ Sensors into Raw Material and Energy Feedstock   
• PROPAT - Robust and affordable process control technologies for improving standards and optimising industrial operations 
• CONSENS - Integrated Control and Sensing for Sustainable Operation of Flexible Intensified Processes 
• ICSPEC - In-line Cascade laser spectrometer for process control 

SPIRE 2 – ‘2014 on Adaptable industrial processes allowing the use of renewables as flexible feedstock for chemical and energy applications’

• STEAMBIO - Flexible Superheated Steam Torrefaction and Grinding of Indigenous Biomass from Remote Rural Sources to Produce Stable Densified Feedstocks for Chemical and Energy Applications 
• MEFCO2 - Methanol fuel from CO2 - Synthesis of methanol from captured carbon dioxide using surplus electricity 
• MOBILE FLIP - Mobile and Flexible Industrial Processing of Biomass 

SPIRE 3 – 2014 on ‘Improved downstream processing of mixtures in process industries’

• PRODIAS - PROcessing Diluted Aqueous Systems 

SPIRE 4 – 2014 on ‘Methodologies, tools and indicators for cross-sectorial sustainability assessment of energy and resource efficient solutions in the process industry’

• STYLE - Sustainability Toolkit for easY Life-cycle Evaluation 
• SAMT - Sustainability assessment methods and tools to support decision-making in the process industries 
• MEASURE - Metrics for Sustainability Assessment in European Process Industries 

EE 18 – 2014 on ‘New technologies for utilisation of heat recovery in large industrial systems, considering the whole energy cycle from heat production to transformation, delivery and end use’

• TASIO - Waste Heat Recovery for Power Valorisation with Organic Rankine Cycle Technology in Energy Intensive Industries 

Waste 1 – 2014 on ‘Moving towards a circular economy through industrial symbiosis’

• RESLAG - Turning waste from steel industry into a valuable low cost feedstock for energy intensive industry 
• CABRISS - Implementation of a CirculAr economy Based on Recycled, reused and recovered Indium, Silicon and Silver materials for photovoltaic and other applications 
• FISSAC - Fostering industrial symbiosis for a sustainable resource intensive industry across the extended construction value chain
• BAMB - Buildings as Material Banks: Integrating Materials Passports with Reversible Building Design to Optimise Circular Industrial Value Chains 
• RESYNTEX - A new circular economy concept: from textile waste towards chemical and textile industries feedstock  

The 2015 Project Brochure covers the following calls and associated projects:

SPIRE 5 – 2015 on ‘New adaptable catalytic reactor methodologies for Process Intensification’ 

• ADREM - Adaptable Reactors for Resource- and Energy-Efficient Methane Valorisation 
• MEMERE - MEthane activation via integrated MEmbrane Reactors 
• PRINTCR3DIT - Process Intensification through Adaptable Catalytic Reactors made by 3D Printing 
• ROMEO - Reactor Optimisation by Membrane Enhanced Operation 
• TERRA - Tandem Electrocatalytic Reactor for Energy Resource Efficiency and Process Intensification 

SPIRE 6 – 2015 on ‘Energy and resource management systems for improved efficiency in the process industries’

• EPOS - Enhanced energy and resource Efficiency and Performance in process industry Operations via onsite and cross-sectorial Symbiosis 
• MAESTRI - Total resource and energy efficiency management system for process industries 
• SHAREBOX - Secure Management Platform for Shared Process Resources 
• SYMBIOPTIMA - Human-mimetic approach to the integrated monitoring, management and optimisation of a symbiotic cluster of smart production units 

SPIRE 7 – 2015 on ‘Recovery technologies for metals and other minerals’

• ADIR - Next generation urban mining - Automated disassembly, separation and recovery of valuable materials from electronic equipment 
• REE4EU - Integrated high temperature electrolysis and Ionic Liquid Extraction for a strong and independent European Rare Earth Elements Supply Chain 
• REMAGHIC - New Recovery Processes to produce Rare Earth -Magnesium Alloys of High Performance and Low Cost  

SPIRE 8 – 2015 on ‘Solids handling for intensified process technology’

• IBD - Intensified by Design® for the intensification of processes involving solids handling 

EE 18 – 2015 on ‘New technologies for utilisation of heat recovery in large industrial systems, considering the whole energy cycle from heat production to transformation, delivery and end use’

• INDUS3ES - Industrial Energy and Environment Efficiency 
• I-THERM - Industrial Thermal Energy Recovery Conversion and Management 
• SUSPIRE - Sustainable Production of Industrial Recovered Energy using energy dissipative and storage technologies  

About SPIRE
The Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Efficiency (SPIRE) is a contractual Public-Private Partnership (PPP) dedicated to innovation in resource and energy efficiency enabled by the process sector in Europe. The SPIRE Partnership is based on Article 19 of the EU Research and Innovation Framework Programme Horizon 2020 regulation and has been established through a contractual arrangement between the European Commission and A.SPIRE aisbl. SPIRE will be implemented through competitive calls included in the Horizon 2020 work programme. The objective of SPIRE is to develop the enabling technologies and value chain solutions required to reach long-term sustainability for Europe in terms of global competitiveness, ecology and employment.

For more information visit the SPIRE website.