Manufacturing faces rocky road to net zero
A new report suggests that manufacturing faces greater decarbonisation challenges than any of the other 17 major UK industries on the path to net zero.
Commissioned by insurer Zurich UK and conducted by the University of the West of England (UWE), the Journey to Net Zero report highlighted a stagnation in the sector’s emissions over the past decade, despite a previous steady decline.
Manufacturing’s long investment cycles, described as a ‘key impediment’ to cutting emissions as well as a financial challenge, require supply chain intervention to be effectively addressed.
Ensuring the entire supply chain is taken into account is the ‘single greatest decarbonisation challenge’ for the sector according to the report. Many manufacturing sub-sectors supply each other, with one sub-sector’s output being another’s input, such as the steel sector supplying automotive.
This creates supply chain challenges, but also waste prevention and circular economy opportunities, the report said.
Energy intensive production of materials like cement, steel and glass account for the majority (60 per cent) of the sector’s emissions, but the report also identifies the UK’s biggest manufacturing sector, food and drink, as a growing contributor.
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