Enabling Transformation: EU Creates Flexibility for Climate-Friendly Industry

The EU Commission has approved national subsidies under the new state aid framework CISAF (Clean Industrial State Aid Framework) for the temporary use of natural gas in industry—provided that this leads to a significant reduction in emissions from production. For Dr. Timm Kehler, Chairman of Die Gas- und Wasserstoffwirtschaft, this is an important but deliberately time-limited component of the transformation:

“The EU Commission’s decision is a pragmatic step to advance the climate-friendly transformation of European industry. Natural gas is not an end in itself—it is a bridge on the path toward fully climate-neutral industrial production.

Especially in sectors like the steel industry, where a large-scale supply of low-carbon hydrogen is not yet available in the short term, natural gas offers the opportunity to significantly reduce emissions, safeguard industrial value creation, and thus preserve jobs in Europe. The clear requirement that only investments achieving at least a 70 percent reduction in emissions or a 40 percent reduction in energy consumption will be eligible for support ensures that natural gas is used as a transitional—not permanent—solution.

The Commission’s decision creates the flexibility needed to support industry on its way into the hydrogen economy. For us, the goal remains clear: a climate-neutral industry based on renewable or low-carbon hydrogen, biogas, and synthetic molecules—as a foundation for climate action, competitiveness, and employment in Europe.”