Page 171 - CW E-Magazine (26-9-2023)

News from Abroad

pledges and net zero scenarios, the 7-bt by 2050 in a net zero scenario, Investment
share rises to 41% and 50%, respectively, requiring substantial expansion in deve- In Wood Mackenzie’s base case, the
by 2050. loping transport, shipping and storage total investment needed to decarbonise
infrastructure. the energy sector is estimated to cost
With low carbon hydrogen and $1.9 trillion a year, and this will need
CCUS projects moving out of the pilot In Wood Mackenzie’s base case, to increase by 150% – or $2.7 trillion a
phase and becoming mainstream, Wood fossil fuels account for 69% of end-use year – if we are to meet the 1.5°C tar-
Mackenzie’s net zero scenario sees the energy demand in 2023, falling to 53% get. More than 75% of this investment
requirement of 515-mt of low-carbon by 2050, triggered by greater end-use is needed in the power and infrastruc-
hydrogen by 2050, as the technology effi ciency and electrifi cation. ture sectors.
will see 11% share in final energy
demand by 2050, 4% in the base case, Growth in LNG markets will see “Sustained investment is critical for
phasing out fossil fuels in chemicals, natural gas increase its share of primary both the existing and new supply of zero
steel, cement and heavy-duty mobility. energy supply to 25% in 2023, whereas and low carbon energy sources. Global
coal and oil stagnates or declines. Gas cooperation and an institutional frame-
CCUS and DAC abate fossil fuels demand is projected to grow for 10 work are essential in driving innovation
use while low and zero carbon energy years in all scenarios due to its wide and technology development. COP28
supply is developed. In Wood Macken- range of applications. Demand weak- can build the consensus for commit-
zie’s base case, CCUS and DAC capa- ness in buildings and industry is offset ment amongst member states to meet
city are projected to rise from 100-mt in by increased coal-to-gas switching in the 1.5°C climate target and ultimately
2023 to 2-bt (billion tonnes) by 2050. power and feedstock for blue hydrogen shape the outcome of the global energy
The deployment needs to reach around production. transition,” Mr. Flowers concluded.

IMPRACTICAL REGULATION
European valves lobby opposes blanket PFAS ban

The EU’s planned ban on the use of possible,” emphasised Mr. Axel Weid- adhering. Fluoropolymers have a low
the entire per-and polyfl uoroalkyl sub- ner, shareholder of Mankenberg GmbH hazard potential during the use phase.
stances (PFAS) group of substances, and Chairman of the Valves Association. For the industry, they are indispensable,
consisting of around 10,000 substances, because it is only through their use that
threatens numerous industrial pro- Exemption sought valves are protected from corrosion and
cesses – including the production and In order to protect the interests of failure, for example, thus ensuring safety
trade of industrial valves, according to the industry, the VDMA Valves Associa- for people and the environment.
VDMA, the leading trade body repre- tion has drawn up a statement for the
senting German and European mechani industrial valves sector on the PFAS “Without PFAS, none of our pro-
cal and plant engineering industry, and restriction project, which shows why ducts would work as things stand today.
the VDMA Valves Association. The trade an un-refl ected general ban on PFAS, Even if alternatives were developed in
bodies are campaigning for “better, i.e., also on those substances with a the short term, it will take us several
more practical PFAS regulation and low hazard potential in industrial valves, years to renew all the necessary qualifi -
rejecting a blanket ban”. would go too far and thus cause serious cations for all products,” explained
damage to the industry. In its statement, Dr. Thomas Steckenreiter, CTO at Samson
“Without PFAS, industrial valves the association calls for the general and board member of the VDMA
would no longer be usable in their sales exemption of fl uoropolymers, which are Industrial Valves Division.
sectors of the chemical and pharma- considered “polymers of low concern,”
ceutical industries, in power plant construc- from the planned PFAS general ban. The trade association has submitted
tion or in the current growth market of Fluoropolymers are high-performance its position within the scope of the corres-
hydrogen, which would slow down the plastics characterised by particularly ponding EU consultation procedure
energy turnaround. And without it, safe high resistance. They have sealing, to lobby for securing fair framework
processes in the aforementioned sys- water-repellent and friction-reducing conditions for the industry in Germany
tem-relevant key industries are also not properties and prevent substances from and Europe.

Chemical Weekly September 26, 2023 171

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