Frankfurt/Brussels, 4 March 2020 – On the EU Commission's proposal for a European climate law, VDMA President Carl Martin Welcker says:

“Europe wants to lead the way in climate protection and aims for climate neutrality by 2050. The European mechanical engineering industry can make a significant contribution to this with its knowledge, innovations and concrete products as well as having a positive influence on other regions of the world.

Climate protection requires a reliable, market-based framework and a cost-efficient approach to drive forward innovations. We welcome the fact that the EU Commission includes technologically feasible and responsible approaches, such as greenhouse gas capture and storage (CCS), in its definition of climate neutrality. One promising sign is the inclusion in the climate law of the uptake

of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere by natural ecosystems in emission calculations.

However, European climate legislation must make it possible to count sustainable emission reductions in third countries in the EU. In order to complement European action and make key technologies available in developing countries. We are disappointed that the Commission leaves

no room for international mechanisms, which we hope will be adopted this year under the Paris Convention. VDMA views it as imperative that these components are taken into account and included in the legislative proposal.”

A picture of Carl Martin Welcker, VDMA President, can be found here.

The VDMA represents more than 3300 companies in the medium-sized mechanical and plant engineering sector. With a good 1.3 million employees in Germany and a turnover of 232 billion euros (2018), the sector is the largest industrial employer and one of the leading German industrial sectors overall