Sustainable Finance for Industry Decarbonisation

Visegrád Group (V4) constituents Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia are currently lagging behind in industrial decarbonisation. The four countries have to focus their efforts on heavy-emitting industries if they are to meet national as well as EU climate targets. However, the necessary expertise, financing mechanisms and policy incentives are still lacking among representatives of politics, business, and finance.

Industrial Site Landschaftspark Nord in Duisburg, Germany; Photo Industrial Site Landschaftspark Nord in Duisburg, Germany © pixabay

The project team provided representatives of heavy-emitting industries, of financial institutions and policy makers with the necessary knowledge to promote and advance decarbonisation efforts in the target countries. To this end, the team carried out several activities, closely engaging with the target group at all stages. First, it conducted a baseline study on the state of industrial decarbonisation in the V4 countries. On this basis, it developed a policy and financing roadmap that guides investors and policy makers through the steps they need to take in order to initiate the decarbonisation process. Additionally, workshops and information events targeted representatives from the industries, providing knowledge and skills in the fields of climate change, decarbonisation, climate policies and sustainable finance. Furthermore, a conference and an online portal enabled the target group to easily access information on industrial transformation as well as on financing opportunities and instruments. While providing decision makers with the necessary knowledge, the activities also fostered communication, collaboration and networking among the participants. This enabled the sharing of ideas, of best practice examples, and the formation of a critical mass to hold politicians accountable for their decarbonation efforts. An “industrial taskforce” in each country gathered members from different sectors and geographical areas, who committed themselves to net-zero goals, provide thought leadership for the further project, and promoted the decarbonisation agendas. In the medium to long term, these activities thus contributed to the development of decarbonisation-oriented policies and regulatory frameworks in the V4 region.

• Publications identify barriers to decarbonisation: Four country-specific reports (Slovakia, Hungary, Czechia, and Poland) outlined the financial, regulatory, and political barriers to industrial decarbonisation. The positions of industry leaders on more ambitious efforts and the EU agenda for sustainable finance were also highlighted.  
• Country-specific roadmaps receive a lot of attention: Individual studies were developed for the project countries as roadmaps that address the respective national needs in Poland, Hungary, Czechia, and Slovakia.  
  • The public presentation of the studies contributed significantly to the visibility of the project and its results. The studies were widely disseminated and prominently presented at events such as the CEE Sustainable Finance Summit in Prague. This dissemination strategy not only increased the credibility of the research results, but also positioned the project as a notable contribution to the discussion on sustainable finance in the region. 
• Knowledge transfer for greater decarbonisation expertise: With the involvement of 245 stakeholders from industry, the financial sector and politics in Poland, Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia, the foundations were laid for supporting emission-intensive industries in implementing climate targets. Participants were trained to identify regulatory hurdles and financing gaps and to develop strategies for reducing emissions – a key step towards applying decarbonisation measures in particularly critical sectors.