Industry

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Industry

2010

Climate policy has traditionally focused on this sector and long-term experiences with policies exist. A few countries have long-standing policies. The maximum rating is a ‘C’, however most countries are well below halfway to achieving the goal, with an average rating of ‘E’.

Germany and Denmark have stable support systems for electricity generation from renewable energy. Both have operated feed-in tariffs for over a decade. Policies to support combined heat and power are relatively advanced in Ireland, Germany and Spain. Performance in overarching issues for electricity supply is generally low due to the un-ambitious cap of the electricity sector in the emission trading system; no emission performance standards for new power plants leading to newly built coal fired power plants and widespread subsidies, in addition to tax exemptions for fossil fuels.

2011

Reduced support for renewable electricity, mainly for solar photovoltaic (PV), partly justified
Some countries reduced support for renewable electricity, mainly the support levels for solar photovoltaic (Slovak Republic, Czech Republic, Italy, France, Spain, UK, Estonia, Germany and Belgium). The reduction of support levels for solar PV is justifiable given the decrease in production cost and very strong market growth. Still, the support reductions were often implemented as a step change and have reduced future investment certainty. This is especially the case in Spain and the Czech Republic, where the support for solar PV was cut retroactively, either by cutting the tariff or by introducing a tax for existing installations.

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Industry

Country	Details per country
AUSTRIA	Renewable Energy Some demonstration projects for renewable energies in the industry are covered by the feed-in tariff, but they are not sufficient to develop the sector’s potential.
BELGIUM	Renewable Energy Quota systems are implemented at the national and regional levels. In Flanders, enterprises are eligible for the “ecologiepremie” that gives financial support to environmental investment. In Wallonia a similar support measure is available to support companies and independent professionals. European standards on biomass are applied, but biomass imports are not promoted or regulated by the Belgian government.
BULGARIA	Renewable Energy No policy for integration of renewable energy in industry.
CZECH REPUBLIC	Renewable Energy The use of renewables in industry is almost neglected in the Czech Republic. R&D for demonstration or pilot projects in the industry is supported through the Ministry of Industry. However, in 2009, only 2 out of about 500 projects included renewables. There is some minor support through a state programme which covers part of the structural and investment costs, but this is not sufficient to lead to a low-carbon industry.
DENMARK	Renewable Energy There is funding available for research, development and demonstration projects for renewable energy, such as for biomass to bioenergy, conversion technologies and waste to energy.
ESTONIA	Renewable Energy There are no policies to promote renewable energies in the industrial sector.
FINLAND	Renewable Energy The forest industry utilises wood and black liquor in their energy production. Other renewables currently play minor roles in industrial processes. In the new feed-in tariff scheme small scale combined heat and power from wood is promoted by new feed-in premiums. Although some industries are already making plans and building pilot scale plants, there are no policy measures to promote geothermal energy heat production.”
FRANCE	Renewable Energy There are tenders for the use of renewables, especially biomass, in industry, the tertiary sector and agriculture. The demonstration fund, equipped with €400m for the period 2009-2012, supports R&D and demonstration projects in the fields of renewables, energy efficiency, CCS, smart grids, etc. The chemical industry signed a voluntary agreement regarding the use of primary material from renewable origin. A share of 15% is targetted by 2017, compared to 7% which was the case in 2008.
GERMANY	Renewable Energy There are only limited activities to promote renewable energy in the industry sector. The German Bank for Reconstruction (KfW) offers some consultancy, financial support and funding for R&D.
GREECE	Renewable Energy Although there are no targeted policies in this area and only few pilot projects used in the industry sector, the use of renewables for heat or fuel use has increased by 1.4% from 2000 to 2007. Most likely, this is due to autonomous developments within sectors.
HUNGARY	Renewable Energy Between 2000 and 2007 the share of renewable heat/fuel use in industry increased by around 3%. This trend is largely responsible for the fairly decent rating of this sector, but it is not due to outstanding policies. There are no specific policies for use of renewable fuel in industrial processes.
IRELAND	Renewable Energy Two of the key support schemes for industry were closed in 2010 due to budgetary constraints. These were the Renewable Heat Deployment Programme (ReHeat) and the combined heat and power deployment scheme. The government has stated that these schemes will be replaced by market-based mechanisms but has not specified further details. The use of renewable heat/fuel saw a modest increase over the last decade, thanks to the ReHeat scheme, which covered boilers fuelled by wood chips and/ or wood pellets, solar thermal systems, and heat pumps for industrial, commercial and community use. When ReHeat was launched in 2007, the target was 5% heat from renewable sources by 2010.
ITALY	Renewable Energy Incentives for renewable energy are generally compatible with their application for industrial use. Conto Energia IV focuses strongly on roof-based plants. New incentives are to be agreed later in 2011 for solar thermal energy. The focus is mainly on electricity production units of medium size (up to 1 MW).
LATVIA	Renewable Energy There are no specific policies to support renewable energies in the industrial sector. There are some general policies to promote renewables but it is not clear if and how far the industry sector is covered. Based on Regulation No. 12 of 4 January 2011, the industrial sector might receive support under the measure Renewable energy, reduction of GHG. The support is provided to acquisition, construction, installation, reconstruction or replacement of specified renewable energy technologies (heating, electricity generating, cogeneration).
LITHUANIA	Renewable Energy There are no industry-specific policies or funds for the promotion of renewable energy, only general industrial policies.
LUXEMBOURG	Renewable Energy There are some grants available for energy efficiency and renewable energy investment for industry, but no significant policies to specifically target renewable fuel use. The grants cover up to 40% of eligible costs.
MALTA	Renewable Energy *A Micro Tac Credit* scheme to increase the production of renewable energies by SMEs has been promoted. However there are limitations in the funds available and uncertainties over its duration.**
NETHERLANDS	Renewable Energy In the period 2008-2009, eleven industrial demonstration projects were subsidised, of which eight concerned the use of biomass. Although criteria for imported biofuels (NTA 8080) are stricter than EU legislation, they are not yet obligatory. Granting of subsidy is not subject to these criteria.
POLAND	Renewable Energy There are no special policies aimed at increasing the use of renewable energy in the industrial sector. There is a general support system for renewable energy: quota obligations for suppliers of electricity to end users. The Emissions Trading System also motivates industry to use renewable energy.
PORTUGAL	Renewable Energy There are some initiatives to promote renewables in industry, although administration can be a bottleneck. Several measures were put in place to simplify the licensing of renewable energies. The new mini-production subsidy schemes (up to 250 kW) can be very useful for SMEs if correctly managed.
ROMANIA	Renewable Energy Romania has strategies in place in order to reach its targets for renewable energies. However, concrete action plans are lacking and hence there is room for improvement in implementation. There are only a few demonstration projects for industrial use of renewables, which are financed by the Romanian Environment Fund.
SLOVAKIA	Renewable Energy Very limited support only extends to demonstration projects. Some support is available under the SAIDC (Slovak Agency for International Development Cooperation) programme.
SLOVENIA	Renewable Energy Subsidies, loans, education and information are provided for businesses which invest in environmentally-friendly heating.
SPAIN	Renewable Energy Incentives for the use of renewables in industry are neglected in Spain. The NREAP 2011-2020 has very few measures relating to geothermal energy and biofuels. A draft of the Renewable Energy Plan 2011-2020 was published in July 2011. Its measures mainly support model and demonstration projects for biomass and geothermal energy in industrial processes, as well as the application of solar thermal and biomass energy in industrial processes via the Renewable Heat Incentive Programme ICAREN, which is budgeting €515.5m for solar heat and €121m for biomass in industry for the period 2011-2020.
SWEDEN	Renewable Energy Demonstration projects for large-scale biomass in industry took place in the 1980’s and 90’s. Today, the use of biomass is common practice in many industrial sectors. Sweden does not have specific legislation in place regarding the sustainability of biomass used for electricity, but it does have a very long history of sustainable biomass use from domestic forests and waste.
UNITED KINGDOM	Renewable Energy There are some examples of industrial installations having on-site renewables. Industry can earn green certificates under the Renewables Obligation for renewable electricity production and get an exemption from the Climate Change Levy for green electricity produced.

Country	Details per country
AUSTRIA	Energy Efficiency Efficiency measures are targeted mainly towards small and medium-sized enterprises, which traditionally play a large role in the sector. The support through the ‘Klima:aktiv’ campaign covers consulting services, information provision and investment support. ‘Best practice’ projects receive additional funding. The target is to save 20,000 t of CO2 per year.
BELGIUM	Energy Efficiency Industrial parties that represent more than 80% of energy consumption are included in voluntary agreements to improve energy efficiency. Involved parties will be exempted from the energy tax. A revision of this scheme will include not only processes but also product design and disposal. This has not been implemented so far. There is no structural support for demonstration or breakthrough technologies. Support is only granted on an ad-hoc basis.
BULGARIA	Energy Efficiency Voluntary agreements on efficiency in industry. However, for the most part they were not transposed.
CZECH REPUBLIC	Energy Efficiency Energy efficiency in industry is also poorly targeted. Voluntary agreements are planned in the future and a joint declaration of the Ministry of Environment and the largest Czech utility has yet to be ratified, although it has been pending for a long time. The national program EFEKT providing support to energy efficiency projects (energy-efficient lighting, use of landfill gas and waste energy, new small hydro, advice on how to save energy costs) has been extended once more for 2011 by the Ministry of Industry and Trade with a budget of €1.2m.
DENMARK	Energy Efficiency Danish voluntary agreements with industry on the implementation of energy efficiency projects are supported by taxation measures. Enterprises with particularly high energy consumption can contract with the Danish Energy Authority regarding energy-efficiency improvements, in return for a discount in CO2 taxes and heating taxes. The agreements are complied with by industry, but the requirements for payback periods of up to five years are not very severe. Taxes on energy consumption have been increased from the first of January 2010.
ESTONIA	Energy Efficiency There are no specific policies to increase energy efficiency in the industrial sector. However, energy efficiency is generally supported via the EU-ETS and the National Programme for Abatement of Greenhouse Gases. Several voluntary agreements exist between the Ministry of Environment and industry sectors. Many enterprises have established environmental management systems on the basis of the Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Management System Act.
FINLAND	Energy Efficiency Initiatives, such as auditing are in place to make industry more efficient, but these are voluntary. Finland’s industry can be considered to be comparatively energy efficient, which is partly due to the high combined heat and power share. The new government plans to decrease energy taxation for energy-intensive industries. It is to be assumed that this will have negative climate impacts.
FRANCE	Energy Efficiency Energy efficiency in the industrial sector is almost neglected, apart from the ETS. A voluntary agreement with some members of the sector was signed but no penalties were introduced for non-compliance. Apart from the aim of increased efficiency, no clear target has been set by this agreement. Recently, a new law was introduced under which funding for various types of low-carbon development can be provided, including for industry. Its first call for applications was in the summer of 2010, so some budget for breakthrough technologies was available. The ADEME (French environment and energy management agency), together with TOTAL, launched in 2011 the 6th tender for research projects on energy efficiency in industry.
GERMANY	Energy Efficiency Several small support measures exist, but they are insufficient in size and scale when compared to the overall size of German industry to significantly change business decisions. The measures include support via consultancy, specific loans for energy efficiency measures, awards and funding for demonstration projects for new technologies in the solar-thermal sector. As of 2013, energy-intensive industries will be required to have energy management systems in place in order to benefit from a reduced eco-tax rate.
GREECE	Energy Efficiency The energy efficiency of the industrial sector is addressed by very few incentives (subsidies for EMS and a pilot version of a voluntary agreement scheme). In addition to the EU-ETS, there are no support schemes for emissions trading in place and there is no support for breakthrough technologies. Without strengthening this sector’s efforts in the future, it will not be possible to achieve a low-carbon economy.
HUNGARY	Energy Efficiency The energy-intensity index in industry improved by almost 25% between 2000 and 2006. There are no outstanding policies in this area, so the fairly decent rating can mainly be attributed to the past trend. A Virtual Power Plant Programme was launched, targeting industrial level energy efficiency, proportionate to a 200MW power plant capacity. It is yet unclear how successful the programme will be.
IRELAND	Energy Efficiency Overall, industry in Ireland is very far from becoming a low-carbon sector by 2050. Energy intensity has increased and the voluntary agreements in place to promote energy efficiency have low ambition levels. A Better Energy Workplaces scheme has been introduced, whose aim is to stimulate energy-saving actions in the business and public sectors. €11.5m in has been allocated in 2011 to provide grants for sustainable energy upgrades and to networking, training and advisory services. Accelerated Capital Allowances (ACA) were introduced as a tax incentive in the Finance Act of 2008 to encourage the purchase of energy efficient equipment in the industry and services sectors. The ACA scheme has been extended until 2014.
ITALY	Energy Efficiency Italy has implemented a White Certificate System to reduce industrial energy consumption. The certificates add 10%-15% to the value of the saved energy for the first 5-8 years. This increases the investment in energy efficiency, but not substantially. The authority for electricity and gas (AEEG) is going to review some aspects of the certificate mechanism in order to guarantee more efficient procedures, stronger support for long lasting measures, and to introduce new technical sheets for standard projects.
LATVIA	Energy Efficiency The substantial increase in efficiency in industry between 1995 and 2007 can be mainly attributed to the general restructuring of the sector after the political changes in the early 90’s. However, Latvia also has a number of policy measures that target efficiency in the sector. Within industry, the use of the best available techniques, which are detailed in the Latvian Industry Development Guidelines (2004-2013), include the promotion of environmentally-friendly technologies and cleaner production. There are policies on energy audits, information and consultation on energy efficiency and the promotion of best practices. These policies are part legislation and part information provision.
LITHUANIA	Energy Efficiency Due to the NEEAP, there are some voluntary agreements with enterprises which are supposed to lead to energy savings of 740 GWh by 2016. However, it is unclear whether they are ambitious enough and will actually deliver. There are also some information programmes, but here, too, the impact is very unclear.
LUXEMBOURG	Energy Efficiency A voluntary agreement and grants for energy efficiency and renewable energy investments encourage measures.
MALTA	Energy Efficiency An addition to the mix of policy instruments to increase energy efficiency, is the energy auditing schemes being implemented, such as the energy auditing scheme for major industrial activities and an ‘Eco-contribution’ scheme to provide an incentive to minimise waste (in the industrial, commercial & domestic sectors). However, the impact of the incentives are unclear.
NETHERLANDS	Energy Efficiency The main policy instruments are voluntary agreements, which have good coverage (90% of industry) and targets (2% energy efficiency per year), but they lack penalties for non-compliance.
POLAND	Energy Efficiency There is some financial support for energy efficiency projects in industry. The Polish Sustainable Energy Financing Facility is a €150m credit line financed by European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. It was established to help small and medium-sized businesses invest in sustainable and energy efficient technologies.
PORTUGAL	Energy Efficiency Portugal has a well-designed integrated support scheme for energy efficiency in industry, which includes energy audits, monitoring and target setting. Sanctions are applied for not reaching the agreed targets. The system is still in its infancy, but is on the right path. Here, too, bureaucracy could be a potential barrier. Energy Efficiency is promoted in all sectors under the PNAEE (National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency) which sets targets for 2015. Results for 2010 highlighted the important contribution of the integrated support scheme managed by ADENE, the National Energy Agency. Periodic reports on the status of the programme available on the website of ADENE.
ROMANIA	Energy Efficiency In December 2010, the Romanian Ministry of the Economy published the methodology to establish electricity prices and bonuses for producers of energy from cogeneration plants. (Order 37 from 2010). There are currently no voluntary agreements, except for waste due to the producer responsibility.
SLOVAKIA	Energy Efficiency Energy efficiency measures are only starting. Funding of up to €5m per project is available for energy efficiency improvements. A total of €128m was set aside for information and training support until 2010. In addition, since 2005, industries in the heat delivery sector are required to have energy managers.
SLOVENIA	Energy Efficiency Funds are also available for renewable energy use and the improvement of energy efficiency. Energy management training is provided. There is a programme for improving the energy efficiency of motor driven systems. Eco-labels and environmental management systems are implemented.
SPAIN	Energy Efficiency Spain introduced an energy savings and efficiency strategy in 2004 which runs until 2012. It includes voluntary agreements, energy audits and financial support for efficiency measures. The aim is to reduce CO2 emission by 42 Mt by 2012. However, as the financial support only partly covers the necessary investment cost and noting the current financial situation in Spain, companies’ investment capability for energy savings measures is severely limited and thus the target might not be reached.
SWEDEN	Energy Efficiency A voluntary programme (PFE) for energy efficiency in energy-intensive industry exists. Companies are exempt from the energy tax for five years if they implement an energy management system and an energy survey on how to best improve energy efficiency. This covers roughly one fifth of Sweden’s energy consumption. It is a relatively weak policy compared to what is needed. However, the pulp and paper industry in Sweden, which is an important sector, is highly efficient and has introduced various measures to increase efficiency. This has, however, not been driven by energy policy.
UNITED KINGDOM	Energy Efficiency Climate change agreements are a key initiative in this area. These are negotiated at the sectoral level and entitle energy-intensive industries to an 80% reduction in the Climate Change Levy if they meet energy efficiency or carbon reduction targets. It has been announced that the tax reduction will be reduced from 80% to 65%, thus making the instrument less attractive. In addition, the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), a trading scheme for large non-domestic buildings and small industry (essentially a carbon tax), provides an incentive to uptake energy efficiency in particular, as well as other carbon abatement measures. Carbon Trust Technology Accelerators provide funding and support for different sub-sectors in renewables, as well as for energy efficiency. The Market Transport Programme focuses on sustainable products.

Country	Details per country
AUSTRIA	Overarching There are substantial refunds of energy taxes for energy intensive industries. According to the finance ministry, tax refunds amount to 1/3 of total energy tax revenues. Although the Austrian Court of Auditors recommended, in 2005, to make use of the options opened by the EU tax directive in order to reform and move towards a more environmentally-friendly energy taxation system, these have not yet been taken up by the government. There is some evidence of more environmentally-friendly taxation (e.g. introduction of a CO2-tax, adaptation of mineral oil taxes) as part of a possible general tax reform. In the 2011 budget, service companies that are large energy consumers have been excluded from energy tax refunds, so now only energy-intensive industries can profit from these refunds. Some measures or strategies for restructuring the industrial and material system can be found in the resource efficiency action plan which will be finalised by the end of 2010.
BELGIUM	Overarching Belgium has a good policy on recycling and collection of recyclable materials. Glass, paper and plastic, metal and carton packaging is being collected separately. Non-recyclable packaging waste is also reduced by an Eco-tax. Plastic and aluminium packaging is also taxed. There is a small programme in Flanders that promotes Eco design of products on a voluntary basis. At the federal level, product standards are currently elaborated in relation to the European Directive on Eco Design for Energy-using Products (EuP Directive), but no measures are implemented that go beyond the EU requirements.
BULGARIA	Overarching Energy efficiency is focusing predominantly on European funding and "market mechanisms" without indicating what these could look like. Possible funding through the Green Investment scheme but Bulgaria is becoming late with this mechanism and the rules are still not defined.
CZECH REPUBLIC	Overarching The redesign of products for a future low-carbon economy is not subject to any support, nor is CCS for biomass or process emissions.
DENMARK	Overarching There are no direct subsidies for energy-intensive industry for conventional fuel supply and consumption (direct and indirect). At present, no initiatives to promote production of chemicals and materials from renewables exist. Denmark’s EU sectors that fall under the emission trading scheme (ETS) reduced emissions by 0.5% in 2010.
ESTONIA	Overarching The share of recycled waste in total waste is approximately 10% below the EU average; but within two years it has increased by approx. 12%, reaching 45.7% in 2006. Producer liability for product waste is implemented, but apart from this no substantial policies exist to minimise waste and encourage re-use and recycling. There is an environmental charge (not sector specific) which doubled within three years. However, enterprises can be exempt from this tax if they invest in waste and pollution reduction.
FINLAND	Overarching Industry and electricity or heat production are highly interdependent in Finland. Industrial companies own power companies and excess process heat coming from industry is used for district heating.
FRANCE	Overarching The tax level in the building sector is rather low.
GERMANY	Overarching Energy-intensive industry is exempt from paying its share of increased electricity prices due to the feed-in tariff. This exemption was introduced in 2006 and no plans exist for a phase-out. In 2010, the coverage of businesses was increased, which led to an increase of the total exemption from €650m to €1.1bn in 2010. In order to receive this exemption, businesses are obliged to prove that they monitor and analyse their energy efficiency potentials. Eco-tax cuts for the manufacturing industry have been reduced for 2011. The reduced rate was raised to 75% from formerly 60% of regular eco-tax rates. The maximum threshold value for application of the reduced tax rate is now raised to €1000 from formerly €512. An additional eco-tax break for energy-intensive industry has been slightly lowered from 95% to 90%. It was decided that from 2013 on this additional tax break will only be provided if a company proves that it takes efforts to improve energy efficiency. These efforts have to be certified by an energy management system or an equivalent tool. There are programmes and an agency in place to promote material efficiency improvements. Companies who want to reduce their production waste and emissions receive funding. Several laws are in place to improve the efficiency of specific products. No incentives are being provided for carbon-capture technologies in process emissions. A law on CCS passed the parliament in July, but was rejected by the Federal Council (Bundesrat) in September 2011.
GREECE	Overarching Energy-intensive industries, mainly steel and aluminium, profit from very low tariffs for their electricity use, which does not support the development of renewable energies or energy efficiency measures. In the light of the current economic crisis, a further decrease in the electricity price for industry was introduced in June 2011. Furthermore, the energy tax for conventional fuels used in the industry is rather low. There is some minor support in place for the development of innovative product design, but it is not very ambitious.
HUNGARY	Overarching According to the public procurement law, public tenders, “are allowed to include environmental or sustainability aspects” in the tender documentation. No significant efforts to reform the industrial sector could be found.
IRELAND	Overarching The cut of emissions that are covered under the emission trading scheme (ETS Phase II) is minimal and the target for Phase III is not very ambitious. There are no policies on material use and no additional incentives to cut emissions. A huge increase in waste for landfill and incineration is accompanied by a massive increase in landfill gas emissions. A number of initiatives targeting industry were cut due to budgetary constraints, such as the Renewable Heat Deployment programme and the combined heat and power deployment programme. A new programme called ‘Better Energy Workplaces’ was launched in May 2011. It provides financial support for a range of sustainable energy measures in the workplace. The scheme is already (as of September 2011) closed to new applicants.
ITALY	Overarching Taxes account for more than 35% of fuel cost (for natural gas). For large consumers, such as the industry sector, a lower rate applies. The tax for electricity use is approximately 14%, but if system costs and grid costs are included, the total tax will increase to 38%. New Entrants Reserves for the 2008-2012 period have finished, so new entrants need to buy credits in advance, which will be reimbursed after the proceedings of the auctions for 2013 allocations. The taxes on energy and natural gas have remained constant in recent years. A carbon tax was introduced some years ago, but it was never really applied. Some consumer-facing sectors voluntarily implement good polices, thanks to the diffusion of carbon footprint practice for retail products and organisations, such as by reducing packaging weight and using recycled materials. This is increasing consumer awareness and creating more demand for such initiatives.
LATVIA	Overarching The share of recycled waste has decreased in recent years, indicating that policies are not sufficient to keep up with increases in waste production as a result of economic growth. Measures taken include reductions to the natural resource tax for those undertaking waste reduction projects, improving recycling and implementing voluntary packaging management programmes. Additionally, environment and energy management systems are promoted.
LITHUANIA	Overarching There is a law on waste management and a waste management plan. In addition, a law on management of packaging and packaging waste was implemented in 2002. In 2011 priority is being given to the improvement of the biodegradable waste management system. Recycling of secondary raw materials and re-usable packaging is being promoted as part of the national strategy for sustainable development. However, all these measures are not sufficient to counter the growth of waste caused by the increasing wealth of the country. Public procurement criteria require the implementation of environmental management systems by suppliers, to promote energy efficiency. This is an innovative and welcome step in the right direction.
LUXEMBOURG	Overarching Luxembourg’s main industrial product is steel. In recent years, government policy has targeted diversification; chemicals, medical products, rubber, tires, glass, and aluminium are now also produced. There are no efforts to initiate a transformation to a low-carbon industry, no redesign of products, high energy or CO2 taxes, or industrial process carbon capture and storage (CCS).
MALTA	Overarching No policies found to supporting the redesign of products. The mineral oil/ excise duty tax is insufficient.
NETHERLANDS	Overarching Two demonstration projects on CCS with process emissions were planned, but both were cancelled. Exemptions on the Regulatory Energy Tax are made for industry, including the horticulture sector.
POLAND	Overarching Although there are no renewable energy policies dedicated to the use of renewables, companies are interested in using renewable energies if financially attractive. There are no policies in place that encourage the redesign of products to be longer-lasting, less material-intensive and recyclable.
PORTUGAL	Overarching Taxes on fossil fuels have been raised for companies which are not part of the EU-ETS and are not part of specific agreements for energy efficiency targets. At the moment, there is no CO2 tax as an incentive to use renewable energy, but one is expected. The introduction of taxes for industrial fuel is in its implementation phase. There are promising plans for fiscal reform which would remove indirect incentives for fossil fuel consumption. The level of tax takes into account the need for industries to adapt gradually.
ROMANIA	Overarching Subsidies for the use of fossil fuels in energy-intensive industries have decreased. Furthermore, use of alternative energy in industry is promoted by national strategies. In their National Strategy for Sustainable Development, Romania states that the specific consumption rates for materials and energy losses should be reduced by 1.2%–1.5% per year. The strategy points in the right direction; however, there is no clear policy on implementation yet. Implicit energy tax is below 100% at present, but action plans and regulations are planned to increase it gradually.
SLOVAKIA	Overarching Recycling is identified as a priority, since the share of recycled waste is one of the lowest in the EU. A fund to help organise recycling and financed by producers and importers of 10 specific products. Other measures to restructure industry practices are not present.
SLOVENIA	Overarching High energy tax. There is an air pollution tax - with exemptions for businesses which agree to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 2.5% compared to the base year.
SPAIN	Overarching The energy tax for the industrial sector is amongst the lowest in the EU. The redesign of products to be more long-lasting, less material-intensive and more recyclable is targeted by the National Plan for Research and Development. However, this field is only a small part of the plan, which only runs until 2011 and no follow-up is in place.
SWEDEN	Overarching Sweden has no policies in place to restructure industry to make it more material-efficient. Energy and CO2 tax levels are relatively low, but from 2011 energy tax increased from 0% to 30% and CO2 tax increased from 21% to 30%. There are exemptions or partial exemptions for those covered by the EU ETS or taking part in PFE.
UNITED KINGDOM	Overarching A number of measures are in place: Carbon Trust, Carbon Labelling Programme (supply chain emissions), Market Transformation Programme and WRAP. These are good initiatives, but the uptake is not widespread across the industry.

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