A new body to help industries in Wales decarbonise and encourage new jobs in the net zero economy has been created by the Welsh Government.
Net Zero Industry Wales will work with 40 businesses and academic partners operating within a wide range of carbon-intensive industries to help them achieve Net Zero.
This will require an average annual reduction in Welsh emission of 1.3m tonnes of C02e (from 2018 levels).
The new body will be funded by the Welsh Government who have promised £150,000 funding each year for the next three financial years.
It will have a number of short-to-medium term priorities, including:
Encouraging industry to explore new economic growth opportunities in low-carbon manufacturing
Supporting future development of a circular economy in Wales
Establishing new investments to create and retain high-skilled jobs
Engaging with stakeholders to support public and private investment
Net Zero Industry Wales is part of the Welsh Government’s Programme for Government, which sets out a commitment to ensure Wales becomes a Net Zero nation by 2050.
The Welsh Government has also said it will be publishing its Net Zero Skills Action Plan later this year, which sets out how Ministers will support businesses to develop a green, skilled workforce, to further help Wales achieve its Net Zero target,
Welsh businesses contribute around 20% of the UK’s overall industrial and business carbon emissions.
This is due, in large part, to Wales’ industrial heritage within the steel, oil, gas and chemicals sectors in South Wales, where the majority of Welsh industrial and business carbon emissions come from companies along the M4 corridor.
Economy Minister Vaughan Gething, who announced Net Zero Industry Wales on a visit to TATA Steel in Port Talbot, said accelerating the decarbonisation of Welsh businesses and industry was crucial if Wales was to meet its ambitious net zero targets by 2050.
He said: “The creation of Net Zero Industry Wales is an important step forward to help deliver this transition, and underlines our commitment to support industry in South Wales to decarbonise.
“I was with the Aerospace industry last week exploring the transfer of technologies to support decarbonisation in Wales and expect Net Zero Industry Wales to also act as a focus for this transfer across all our high value manufacturers.”
Another important element was working in close collaboration with the UK’s other industrial clusters to ensure Wales has access to best practice, said Mr Gething.
He said: “Without this action, Wales and the UK will not achieve our net zero targets by 2050.
“We recognise that we cannot deliver decarbonisation in Wales alone. Our goal is to work in partnership with the UK Government to ensure that Welsh businesses and industry have access to a wide range of support.
“It is therefore critical that the tools available to businesses in Wales are fit-for-purpose and are flexible enough to recognise the complex industrial processes and challenges to be met.”
Head of industrial decarbonisation at Industry Wales, Dr Chris Williams said the announcement was the product of many years of work by a number of Welsh companies, governments, universities and like-minded people.
He said: “What we are working on isn’t about changing the industrial make up of Wales, it’s about innovating it, being ahead of the curve when it comes to decarbonisation to ensure that we keep these industries and jobs in Wales. It is also about examining opportunities to create exciting new industries in Wales, as well as revitalising and sustaining existing ones.
He added: “Wales has a long and rich industrial heritage, leading the way in the manufacturing and engineering revolution. Now we plan to be a leader of the green revolution and the creation of Net Zero Industry Wales is certainly going to help us achieve that in a more joined up and cohesive way.”
