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Just back from the U.N. climate summit in Egypt, French President Emmanuel Macron is to meet Tuesday with the heads of the country’s most climate-damaging industries to pressure them to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, amid growing competition from the U.S. and China.
The meeting at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris aims at accelerating the reduction of carbon emissions — which requires new technologies and investments worth billions of euros (dollars). Macron is expected to provide details about potential state aid to help polluting industries to act.
The move comes one day after Macron called on the world’s nations to “continue to take action” to respond to the climate emergency at the COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
Industry represents about 20% of France’s national greenhouse gas emissions. Some 50 industrial sites in France, which account for over half of these emissions, are owned by about 30 French and international groups, whose leadership has been convened to the Elysee. They include major producers of cement, steel, aluminum and other metals and chemicals.
Changes in the sector are key to meeting the goals set by the European Union to decrease by at least 55% greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 from 1990 levels and reach carbon neutrality by 2050.
