Industry and NGO stakeholders call for closer cooperation to act on climate change between the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany

Clean Air Task Force supports a call to action outlining the need for closer cooperation across the region of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany to ensure the decarbonisation of heavy industry in the Antwerp, Rotterdam, Rhine Ruhr Area (ARRRA). The letter, supported by a coalition of actors in the region, highlights that “cross border infrastructure is essential to reach our climate goals.” In particular, the letter emphasises the need to develop a shared vision for the development of carbon capture and storage technologies.

“Industrial decarbonisation has long been a climate blind spot in Europe,” said Lee Beck, CATF’s International Director, Carbon Capture. “We must commercialise carbon capture and storage technologies, which are key to reducing process emissions from industry and particularly from cement production, which account for around 8% of emissions globally.”

“Building a shared CO2 infrastructure will help us achieve economies of scale, include more industrial players, and kick-start industrial decarbonisation. A CO2 network in the ARRRA cluster can act as a model for similar hubs of carbon management throughout Europe and globally,” she added.

The letter calls for a range of measures to be taken to ensure the decarbonisation of heavy industry in the ARRRA, including that governments: 

1. Set up a cross-border CO₂ transport and storage infrastructure working group 
2. Take a leading role in defining the framework conditions for CCS 
3. Develop a common legal framework
4. Provide the necessary funding framework
5. Acknowledge and standardize the multi-modal and multi-purpose nature of CO2 transport and storage infrastructure 
6. Ensure that infrastructure can be expanded to connect to other industrial clusters further inland 

The call to action is supported by actors across a variety of industries and NGOs including: 

• Aramis  
• Bellona Europa 
•  Bellona Deutschland 
• Benelux Business Roundtable 
• Carbon Collectors 

• Clean Air Task Force 
• Energie Beheer Nederland 
• Fluxys 
• Gasunie 
• General Electric 

• HeidelbergCement 
• Holcim Belgium NV 
• Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie 
• Lhoist 
• Natuur & Milieu 

• Natuur en Milieu Federatie Zuid-Holland 
• North Sea Port 
• Port of Antwerp 
• Port of Rotterdam 
• Porthos 

• Shell 
• Smart Delta Resources 
• TotalEnergies 
• Victrol 
• Verein Deutscher Zementwerke (VDZ) 

Read versions of the letter in German and French, and review CATF’s fact sheet on the role of carbon management in a climate-neutral North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

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Press Contact

Rowan Emslie, Communications Director, Europe, Clean Air Task Force, [email protected], +32 476 97 36 42

About Clean Air Task Force

Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world.