A.SPIRE signed the Antwerp Declaration for a competitive, sustainable and resilient Process Industry

A.SPIRE is happy to announce that it is among the over 1100 entities to sign The Antwerp Declaration, showing  “full support for a European Industrial Deal to complement the Green Deal and keep high quality jobs for European workers in Europe.”

The declaration asks for measurements that enforce and create agency for the European Energy-Intensive Industries (EII). It has competitiveness as a strategic priority and aims to create the conditions for a stronger business case in Europe while fostering sustainability and streamlining the legislation, in the context of shifting geopolitics.

On the 20th of February 2024, at the Antwerp industry summit, 73 industry leaders from almost 20 industry sectors presented The Antwerp Declaration for a European Industrial Deal to the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen and the Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo. The industry leaders called for ten urgent actions meant to foster competitiveness, resilience and sustainability for the European industry and job retention in Europe. Alexander de Croo said: "The question in front of us is: how do we continue to grow our European industry? The answer is: with a European Industrial Deal at the same level of a European Green Deal. Not in opposition to each other but to reinforce each other."  

The declaration calls for the integration of the Industrial Deal into the new European Strategic Agenda for 2024-2029. It advocates for the inclusion of a public funding chapter with a Clean Tech Deployment Fund and to position Europe as a globally competitive energy provider. Additionally, it emphasises the necessity of enhancing European infrastructure, bolstering the EU's security in raw materials, and stimulating demand for net zero, low carbon, and circular products. The declaration also stresses the importance of leveraging, enforcing, revitalising, and improving the Single Market, implementing a smarter innovation framework, adopting a new approach to law-making, and ensuring that the structure allows the achievement of results.

The implementation of the ten concrete actions outlined by the declaration will support Europe's positioning as a global industrial leader.

The declaration also emphasises the need for a coherent EU energy strategy, and for fostering high-quality science, and technological innovation, while promoting digital integration and enabling hydrogen and other renewable and low-carbon technologies necessary to reach the aims of the Green Deal. Hence, it mirrors P4Planet SRIA’s innovation areas – renewable energy and hydrogen integration, electricity-driven processes, low-carbon technologies and digitalisation.  

The Antwerp Declaration for a European Industrial Deal is, therefore, fully aligned with the Processes4Planet Research and Innovation Agenda 2050 and its net-zero ambition for the Process Industry (PI).

Together, let's reshape the future of European industry!

The text of the declaration and the signatories can be found here.