1/ CREATIVE ENERGY, THE DRIVING FORCEBEHIND COLLECTIVE PROJECTS

France’s third industrial platform, the coastline and Dunkirk area are pioneers in decarbonisation.

The ongoing teamwork of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, industrialists, local authorities and the ADEME (the French Agency for Ecological Transition) over many years has seen our territory go from the leading emitter of CO2
to the leading emitter of decarbonisation solutions.

Launched alongside Rev3 on the basis of decarbonisation, this dynamic is a wonderful illustration of a collective coming together to make the territory an experimental CO2 laboratory and to rise to the major challenge of transforming a constraint into an opportunity, thereby demonstrating the avant-garde vision of the Littoral Hauts-de-France.

Drawing on its diversity and the complementary nature of its stakeholders, the Dunkirk area is today known as a pioneering territory in the quest for solutions and driving forces for energy efficiency, the circular economy, process transformation, etc.

To build a sustainable future, there’s not just one solution but a mix of solutions!

François LAVALLÉE
1st Vice President of the Hauts-de-France region Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI). Chair of the Littoral Hauts-de-France Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Calais-Boulogne/Mer Port President

The territory’s greatest strength has always been its capacity to mobilise and unite the energies of everyone – industrialists and ports, SMEs and SMIs, local authorities and government departments, the world of education and research – around major projects.

For over 10 years, all local stakeholders have been cooperating on the challenge of reducing carbon emissions. This collective mobilisation has a name: Dunkirk, Creative Energy. This dynamic has been so effective that on repeated occasions it has convinced the government, which then granted the territory its support for major innovation, infrastructure development and training projects.

Nationally and internationally recognised collective mobilisation

Dunkirk, an innovative territory

Dunkirk is one of the 24 winners of the 2019 “Innovative Territories” initiative which was part of the National Investment Plan to develop large-scale innovations. Such recognition led to government aid of €37.5 million of a total estimated budget of €288 million being invested in bringing the territory’s transformation projects to fruition

Dunkirk, winner of the “Low Carbon Industrial Areas” call for projects

Dunkirk is the winner of the very first “Low Carbon Industrial Areas” (ZIBaC) call for projects, launched by the Ministry of Industry through the French Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME).
This arrangement enabled engineering and feasibility studies to be conducted into reducing carbon emissions with a 27.2 million euro budget, including a 50% subsidy
from the ADEME. Dunkirk wants to become the first low carbon industrial area, and inspire other industrial territories, both national and international, to follow in its footsteps.

Dunkirk hosts the European Industry and Territory Decarbonisation Meeting

Founded in 2019 on the initiative of the Greater Dunkirk Urban Council (CUD), the Grand Port Maritime of Dunkirk (GPMD), the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) and major industrial players in the urban area, the European Industry and Territory Decarbonisation Meeting brings together European economic and institutional stakeholders committed to making the industry carbon neutral. This meeting provides the opportunity for collective exchange and to share best practices in order to accelerate industrial decarbonisation across Europe.

Dunkirk joins the CO2 Club

Bringing together stakeholders in research and innovation across all the components of the CO2 capture, storage and recovery chain, the CO2
Club is a place for exchanging information and discussing initiatives among players in the sector’s research and industrial sphere. As a member of this club, Dunkirk places itself firmly as a national player in this field.

Dunkirk joins the Transitioning Industrial Cluster Toward Net Zero initiative