Pathway to Industrial Decarbonisation – Scenarios for the Development of the Industrial Sector in Austria

At the 2015 Paris Climate Conference (COP21), more than 196 countries committed to the goal of limiting global warming to well below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels. The European Union intends to lead these global ambitions with its European Green Deal, and its goal is to achieve climate neutrality by the year 2050. As a member state, Austria supports this goal, and has set even more ambitious targets in many areas. In its current legislative programme, the Austrian federal government is pursuing the ambitious target of making its economic system completely climate neutral by 2040.

Austrian manufacturing industries need to play a key role in achieving these goals as they are responsible for 34% (25 Mt CO2e) of Austria’s total greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) (2019). Combined, industrial processes at all industrial locations in Austria account for approximately 27% (110 TWh/a) of gross domestic energy consumption. Industry also plays an important role in ensuring the welfare and socio-economic development of the Austrian economy. At EUR 93 billion, in 2019 industry generated 24.8% of national GDP. Historically, industry has driven Austria’s prosperity through research and development, creating global leaders in a variety of sectors. The most energy intensive sectors are iron and steel, non-metallic minerals, chemical and petrochemical industries, and pulp and paper. Together, they account for 61% (82 TWh in 2019) of total energy demand and 79% (21 Mt in 2019) of GHG emissions from industry. As communicated by the European Commission, the majority of production processes currently employed in these sectors correspond to the bestavailable technologies.

The New Energy for Industry (NEFI) innovation network is the primary contact point for industrial efforts to achieve climate neutrality in Austria. Within NEFI, stakeholders from a variety of subsectors team up with researchers and engineers to develop novel green technologies that will help industry to become climate neutral, simultaneously advancing Austria as an industrial location and securing its global technology leadership.