Glass production in Portugal has a significant impact, not only on the national economy, but also on intensive energy consumption. And, for this reason, it is essential to design a more sustainable path to achieve the goals of carbon neutrality and the balance between greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and their removal. AIVE – Association of Packaging Glass Industries and APICER – Portuguese Association of Ceramic and Crystal Making Industries launched a project whose main objective is to identify a cleaner path towards carbon neutrality: RODIV2050 – Roadmap for the Decarbonization of the Packaging Glass and Crystal Making Industries.
The urgency of reducing GHG emissions, within a European regulatory framework, drove the creation of this roadmap. And not only. “The RODIV2050 project was also born from an opportunity: the combination of technical knowledge existing in companies, the commitment of sectoral associations (AIVE and APICER) and the availability of public financing instruments that allowed the creation of a collaborative, aggregating project oriented towards concrete results”, explains Beatriz Freitas, general secretary of AIVE. This is one of the national projects that has the support of the PRR – Recovery and Resilience Plan.
This is how much the packaging glass industry reduced water consumption, according to data shared by Tiago Moreira da Silva, president of AIVE. Over the last 30 years, there has been a 30% decrease in energy consumption and more than 50% in CO2 emissions
It is not a process that can be done overnight. Changing the paradigm of the industry, its production and energy consumption, involves taking into account the competitiveness of national companies in a global market. The new roadmap, which results from the union of a consortium made up of these two entities, aims to support and train companies so that they can contribute to the goal of carbon neutrality in the coming decades.
Along the way, they encountered multiple challenges. On the one hand, the energy dependence on natural gas, and, on the other, the increase in expenditure associated with more environmentally friendly energy alternatives. Energy restructuring also implies changes in industrial infrastructure, long-term investments that will have to be considered.
This was the first time that the sector came together “to build a common long-term vision, based on real data and credible technological scenarios”, highlights Beatriz Freitas
Marisa Almeida, head of Environment and Sustainability at CTCV, points out another obstacle: “The complexity of collecting harmonized data between subsectors with different profiles, ensuring comparability and methodological robustness”. A challenge that joins many others, in a study that itself required a lot of energy to reach a successful conclusion and that may encounter other obstacles along the way. This is the case, says Marisa Almeida, of “uncertainty regarding the speed of technological maturation (such as green hydrogen or carbon capture) and the availability and future costs of energy alternatives, as well as limitations in the availability and quality of the secondary raw material cullet glass, conditioning the potential for reducing emissions via circular economy, for the packaging glass industry”.
What is it?
This will be the presentation event for RODIV2050 – Roadmap for the Decarbonization of the Packaging Glass and Crystal Industry, a collaborative initiative launched in 2022, whose main objective is to define the guidelines for the decarbonization of industries in this sector, throughout their value chain.
When, where and at what time?
The event will take place at the Malibu Foz Hotel, in Figueira da Foz, on November 26th, between 2pm and 5:30pm.
Who are the speakers?
- Ana Rita Branco, head of the Inventories and Emissions Trading Unit (UICE) at the Climate Agency
- Gilberto Mariz, head of the Northern Electrical Installations Division (DIEN) at the General Directorate of Energy and Geology (DGEG)
- Jaime Braga, general secretary of the Portuguese Association of Bioenergy Producers (APPB)
- Jean Barroca, Deputy Secretary of State and Energy
- José Pulido Valente, president of IAPMEI
- Marisa Almeida, responsible for Environment and Sustainability at CTCV
- Norma Franco, partner in the area of Climate Change and Sustainability Services at Ernst & Young Portugal
- Pedro Santana Lopes, president of the Figueira da Foz City Council
- Sara Freitas, member of the Policy and Market Intelligence team at APREN (Portuguese Renewable Energy Association)
- Sofia Simões, coordinator of the Resource Economics Unit at LNEG (National Energy and Geology Laboratory)
- Tiago Moreira da Silva, president of AIVE
Why is this topic central?
The energy transition is a debate still raging in the glass and ceramics sector in Portugal, but this initiative finds a kind of common ground for the coming decades, to boost decarbonization, while at the same time taking care of the risks of relocating production to other countries. And it can contaminate other sectors, such as the food industry. It is, at this stage, an important training instrument for companies in the sector, helping them to implement the measures of the National Energy and Climate Plan (PNEC) 2030.
This project is supported by sponsors, with all content created, edited and produced by Expresso (see code of Conduct), without external interference.