The lubricant industry’s primary focus should on be sustainable mobility if it is to contribute to the European Union’s carbon emissions target, cautioned a spokesman for additive company Lubrizol at recent industry event.
Reaching neutral emissions by 2050 is part of the European Commission’s Green Deal, a legislative roadmap to reducing the European Union’s environmental and climate impact while fostering competitive, sustainable industries.
Throughout 2021, the commission – the EU branch that proposes laws – is expected to put forward numerous initiatives that could affect the EU’s lubricant businesses and those looking to import into the bloc. Sustainable and smart mobility should therefore be a priority, Simon Evans, director of the strategic OEM group at additive company Lubrizol, told ACI’s European Base Oils and Lubricants online conference earlier in 2021.
“To achieve the goals of climate neutrality, we must have a 90% reduction in emissions by 2050 … During the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020 to December 2020, in Europe we had a drop in CO2 emissions of around 12%,” Evans said. “Just imagine how big change we have to achieve.”
Evans suggested a number of measures that will help the EU reach its target. Among them include multimodal freight transport using waterways and railways; introducing an emissions trading scheme for the marine sector; ramping up the use of alternative fuels, such as hydrogen; and a review of the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure directive.
“For the industry, the most impactful part [of the Green Deal] will be to propose a revision of the CO2 legislation on passenger cars and vans in 2021. The reason why mobility is a key target is that now it contributes up to 25% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions. If we focus there, we are bound to have big impact on the end result,” Evans said.
Lubrizol, part of the Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate and based in Wickliffe, Ohio, is one of the leading lubricant additive technology companies that sets out standard specifications and approvals for the updated lubricant products. One of its core activities – developing additives for engine oils – could shrink if there is a significant swing away from internal combustion engine vehicles.
“Continuous improvements in vehicle fuel economy performance have potential for substantial reduction of overall impact of emissions,” he concluded.
See Sustainability InSite’s section on the Green Deal for more details.
Sorry, a technical error occurred and we were unable to log you into your account. We have emailed the problem to our team, and they are looking into the matter. You can reach us at cs@lubesngreases.com.
Click here link to homepage