Co-Organizers: AFID and GAforSE
Location: PV C110, Global Renewables Hub, COP30 Blue Zone
Date: November 15th, 2025 | 12.00 – 13.00 pm BRT
Background
Industrial production of key materials is an essential enabler of modern economies. As countries develop, the demand for such materials grows, and, thus, energy consumption. Production processes are carbon intensive, making industry responsible for one-fourth of the global energy-related CO₂ emissions (the second-largest emitter after the power sector).
The Delivering on the UAE Consensus report highlights that hard-to-abate sectors, heavy industries such as steel, cement and chemicals, remain reliant on fossil fuels, and that decarbonising these sectors is essential to achieving global climate goals, but it requires innovative technological solutions, policy support and significant investment to deploy alternatives such as electrification, clean hydrogen and biofuels.
IRENA emphasizes that industrial decarbonization will depend on clean electrification, renewable heat, hydrogen, circularity, and improved materials efficiency. It identifies steel, cement, and aluminium as priority sectors where innovation, transparency, and collaboration are critical to deliver deep and sustained emission reductions. International collaboration on technology transfer, financing, and investment is urgently needed to accelerate industrial decarbonization, particularly in developing economies where industrialization is expanding rapidly and access to capital and clean technologies remains limited.
Crucially, hard-to-abate sectors are not just energy consumers; they form the backbone of the renewable energy supply chain: materials such as steel for wind turbines, aluminum for solar panel frames, and the chemicals for batteries all drive significant Scope 3 emissions for the energy sector. Therefore, accelerating their decarbonization is a direct prerequisite for ensuring the renewable industry itself is comprehensively sustainable. This session connects the decarbonization of heavy industries with the importance of sustaining ESG focus across the value chain for renewables, a core mission of the Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy and its members.
Recent AFID reports highlight that advancing industrial decarbonization requires coordinated action, innovation, and investment. The Building Blocks of Hydrogen Hubs (AFID, 2025) stresses the need for anchor industrial demand, shared infrastructure, and cross-border collaboration to scale green hydrogen. Meanwhile, Advancing BECCUS (AFID, 2024) identifies bioenergy with carbon capture and storage as key to achieving negative emissions, calling for robust policies and certification frameworks to ensure sustainability. Together, they emphasize that collaboration and innovation across value chains are essential to achieving a net-zero industrial future.
About Alliance for Industry Decarbonization
The Alliance for Industry Decarbonization (AFID) serves as a global platform for enhancing dialogue on the industry level and increase cooperation through exchange of insights, experiences and best practices across the energy and hard to abate sectors. The Alliance also aims to help companies develop solid decarbonization strategies and implementation plans.
Members of AFID have individual reduction plans that collectively aim to reduce direct and indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and grow the installed renewable capacity in line with the Alliance’s long-term targets. Moreover, the Alliance’s members are committed to expanding installed green hydrogen capacity, driving green energy solutions, increasing workforce re-skilling, and significantly boosting investments in energy transition projects by the end of this decade. AFID has launched the Emissions Reporting Portal, a digital platform designed to enhance transparency and track members’ progress toward decarbonization goals. The portal supports the quantification of AFID’s emission reduction targets through consistent and data-driven reporting.
In accordance with its Implementation Plan, AFID has fostered actions for decarbonization of industrial value chains, promote understanding of renewables-based solutions and their adoption by industry with a view to contributing to country-specific net-zero goals.
In implementing its Decarbonization Commitment, over 90 member companies and ecosystem knowledge partners of AFID are advancing joint activities, initiatives and realized projects on the ground. The Alliance’s Decarbonization Commitment reflects members’ enhanced ambitions and evolving industry pathways toward net zero.
About Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy
The Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy (est. 2021) is an independent global alliance open to all actors recognizing the urgency of tackling the climate emergency according to the ‘just transition’ principles and the need to promote and embed sustainability and social responsibility in the renewable energy industry. The Global Alliance for Sustainable Energy aims to highlight the meaning of ‘sustainable energy’ inspired by ESG principles and embrace all those working in and impacted by renewables, joining efforts with NGOs, associations and civil society representatives, utility companies, material suppliers and equipment manufacturers, renewable project developers and plant builders, technical and technological partners, and end-users, spanning industrial, commercial and domestic energy consumers.
High Level Dialogue
The High-level dialogue will bring together leaders from industry and technology providers to present progress in industrial decarbonization and value chain sustainability. The session will announce enhanced AFID Decarbonization Commitment, highlighting collective progress and next steps, and launch reports, including Aluminium Circularity: Industry Insights and Future Directions; Green Finance Going Global; and Building Blocks of Hydrogen Hubs. AFID will adopt “Joint Statement Roadmap on International Assistance” needed to enable deep, rapid, and sustained emission reductions across energy-intensive industries.
Agenda
| Time BRT
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Description
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| 12.00 – 12.10 | Welcome & AFID Enhanced Decarbonization Commitment
Opening Remarks
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12.10 – 12.45 |
High level dialogue on accelerating zero & low emission technologies in hard-to-abate sectors Moderated discussion on supporting development and implementation of decarbonisation strategies, technology solutions and leveraging large scale deployment of renewable energies. The dialogue will explore how these advancements, alongside harmonizing Scope 3 frameworks and integrating robust ESG principles across renewable energy value chains are critical for ensuring the global energy transition is bankable and sustainable. Moderator: Mr. Gianni Chianetta – Head of Secretariat, GAforSE Short remarks on importance of ESG and Sustainability Panel Discussion:
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12.45 – 13.00 |
Closing Remarks:
Remarks from participants:
Endorsing joint statement: |
