September 21, 2023
(press release)
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Association presents climate study with strategies for transformation Requirements: green electricity, hydrogen and bridge electricity prices to maintain international competitiveness Factories are preparing changes With the right political decisions, climate-neutral paper production is feasible. This is the result of a comprehensive climate study by the DIE PAPIERINDUSTRIE association, which shows various strategies for transforming the industry. The key to transformation lies in the sufficient availability of renewable energy at competitive prices, according to the 50-page study. The annual energy consumption of German paper production is around 60 TWh and is associated with around 12 million tonnes of fossil CO 2 emissions. This energy is needed to provide steam, electricity and gaseous fuels for the production process, around the clock. However, the transformation to a climate-neutral paper industry requires fossil-free solutions. To achieve this, fossil fuels must be replaced by a mix of wind power or photovoltaics, green gases such as hydrogen and sustainable solid fuels such as fiber residues. The study calculates various scenarios and points out that many of the industry's own power plants are already technically prepared for the use of hydrogen mixtures and that the industry has successfully worked on reducing its energy consumption. The cross-industry contribution to transformation that the paper industry makes, for example as an energy supplier for public electricity and district heating networks, is also discussed. Winfried Schaur , President of DIE PAPIERINDUSTRIE, states: “Our climate study shows that the paper industry can be climate neutral. However, until the federal government's expansion goals for renewable energies are achieved, the industry is dependent on a bridge electricity price in order to survive in international competition and to make the transformation costs plannable." The study, an explanatory film and examples from the industry can be found at www.papierindustrie-transformation.de .
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