The Processes4Planet (P4Planet) Partnership aim is to transform the European process industries to achieve circularity and overall climate neutrality at the EU level by 2050 while enhancing their global competitiveness. P4Planet is a European co-programmed public-private Partnership established between A.SPIRE – as the private entity – and the European Commission in the context of the Cluster 4 (Digital, Industry and Space) of Horizon Europe funding programme.
The systemic shift required to transition to a climate-neutral and circular society calls for more than technological innovation. The spirit of the Processes4Planet Partnership is to promote a holistic systemic socio-economic approach! The Partnership has strategic importance for the European industry, delivering impact on its global technical lead, as well as on the economic growth and creation of new high-skilled jobs.
THE STEPPING STONE
On 23 June 2021 A.SPIRE and the European Commission signed a Memorandum of Understanding of the Processes4Planet Co-programmed Partnership to be implemented as part of the Horizon Europe programme for research and innovation together with 10 other co-programmed Partnerships.
On the same day, A.SPIRE hosted a Processes4Planet Launch Event for its members and stakeholders (here the video with the highlights of the event). Featuring an exclusive line-up of speakers, the event showcased the pledges of A.SPIRE companies to achieve climate neutrality and their engagement to reach the goals of European Green Deal.
THE PARTNERSHIP GOALS
Processes4Planet, the successor to the Horizon 2020 SPIRE Partnership, will aim to achieve three general objectives:
- Developing and deploying climate neutral solutions: P4Planet aims to contribute to the climate neutrality of the overall European economy by bringing technological and non-technological innovations to readiness for subsequent deployment.
- Closing the energy and feedstock loops: process industries will develop and deploy sustainable circular business models through technological and non-technological innovations, cross-sectoral collaboration and engagement with the local ecosystem. This will help them evolve towards resource circularity and improved resource efficiency. P4Planet aims to achieve near-zero landfilling and near-zero (waste) water discharge in 2050.
- Achieving global leadership in climate-neutral and circular solutions, accelerating innovation and unlocking public and private investment: innovation is needed to make climate-neutral and circular solutions more attractive. The competitive position of the European process industries will benefit from global leadership in these economically attractive solutions, as well as from a strengthened integration in the economic fabric of European regions and the Member States.
THE STRATEGIC RESEARCH AND INNOVATION AGENDA
European process industries stand on the brink of a great transformation to become circular and climate neutral by 2050. The Processes4Planet Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) 2050 document details the Partnership’s unique collaborative approach to delivering the cross-sectorial innovation that is essential to this transformation.
In this SRIA, the A.SPIRE community outlines the innovation needed to enable climate neutral, circular and competitive process industries in 2050. In the period 2018-2020, the A.SPIRE community has worked together to develop this document with regular interaction with the European Commission and other stakeholders. It presents its vision for a more prosperous society animated by process industries and details the innovation needed to realize this vision.
Direct link to the SRIA 2050 here.
THE CALLS
The partnership will work on emerging technologies and on the scaling up of already developed technologies at higher technology readiness levels (TRLs) to deliver expected CO2 emission reductions by 2030 and achieve their full impact by 2050.
HUBS FOR CIRCULARITY (H4Cs)
The H4Cs represent a key element of the Processes4Planet Partnership SRIA 2050. They consist of self-sustaining economic industrial ecosystems for full-scale Industrial-Urban Symbiosis (I-US) and Circular Economy, closing energy, resource and data loops. Their achievements will support the action plan announced in the European Green Deal.
FIRST-OF-A-KIND PLANTS
A.SPIRE members have indicated their intention to invest in First-of-a-kind (FOAK) large scale plants of one or more new technologies, integrated in its value chain(s), and deployed by the process industry. The goal is to bring the FOAKs to TRL9, confirming a market pull for the innovations and the relevance of this SRIA. The FOAKs (also known as "marbles" in the A.SPIRE community) demonstrate the potential impact of the overall P4Planet programme.
