STX

🚀 Excited to announce that STX Group has been recognized by the Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship as one of the Netherlands' Top 250 fastest-growing companies! This achievement reflects our commitment to accelerating the energy transition and empowering businesses to achieve their decarbonization goals. Here's a glimpse into our growth trajectory: 🔹Over 200 new team members joined us in 2023 as we recorded a close to 50% global headcount growth  🔹We launched STRIVE by STX: This dedicated division offers holistic climate solutions, helping companies decarbonize through innovative products and services 🔹Through the strategic expansion to key energy hubs like Mexico City, Houston, Brussels and London, we strengthened our global footprint 🔹We relocated our Amsterdam headquarters to CROSSOVER, a leading sustainable office building, aligning with our values and employee well-being Fuelling this growth is a team of passionate and talented individuals who share our vision for a sustainable future. We offer a unique opportunity to work in a dynamic environment alongside some of the brightest minds in the industry, tackle real-world challenges and make a significant impact. We're proud to be part of a thriving ecosystem driving positive economic growth across the Netherlands and beyond. This year's ECE edition is particularly special, celebrating the significant contributions to job creation and societal impact, with a strong focus on sustainability.  Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/dk5RuDX3

The European Court of Auditors (ECA) recently published a report scrutinizing the EU’s hydrogen strategy, highlighting several challenges and areas for improvement. While these critiques are important, it is equally crucial to acknowledge how the European Commission is actively addressing these issues and shaping a promising future for hydrogen in Europe. The RePowerEU targets are ambitious and guide the world’s largest economic block on its decarbonization journey, but these targets are not immediate and rather serve as an aspiration. The Commission is progressively enhancing the framework for hydrogen trade through a wide set of regulations, including the Renewable Energy Directive, FuelEU Maritime and ReFuelEU Aviation, addressing both the supply and demand of hydrogen. The market needs clarity and direction and these regulations provide exactly that for the decarbonization of transport and heavy industries. Ursula von der Leyen, newly re-elected as President of the European Commission, has outlined political guidelines for 2024-2029 that further bolster these efforts, focusing on sustainable prosperity, competitive clean industries and robust international cooperation. The European Commission has responded to the feedback and criticism from the ECA. Read their response letter: https://lnkd.in/dhKUeeGc

The pulp and paper sector, responsible for under 2% of all industrial emissions in 2022 according to IEA, faces mounting pressure as paper production is projected to increase by 2030. The industry's reliance on forestry, land use and energy-intensive processes makes reducing emissions intensity crucial. Moving away from fossil fuels and accelerating energy efficiency improvements are key strategies. Substantial efforts to deploy industrial heat pumps and innovate technologies for pulp and paper drying are increasingly important, especially as the share of recycled paper pulp—more reliant on fossil fuels—continues to grow. Our STRIVE by STX guide delves into the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) requirements for companies in the sector, focusing on both energy/industry (non-FLAG) targets and Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG) targets. Key insights include: ▪ Dual target approach: Pulp and paper companies need to set both energy/industry and FLAG targets. ▪ Carbon removals: An overview of eligible projects and criteria for inclusion in FLAG targets. ▪ Scope 3 emissions: Potential updates and the role of environmental certificates. How does SBTi consider and accept various mechanisms like Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), carbon credits, Guarantees of Origin, energy efficiency and biofuels in the context of reducing emissions? What role do these elements play in achieving science-based targets and supporting the global transition to green energy? Explore these aspects to better understand SBTi requirements and strategies for achieving sustainability goals in the pulp and paper industry. Read the full guide to gain deeper insights: https://lnkd.in/dMKpNE4e

For the past few weeks, our client DILLINGER France, a leader in sheet metal production, has been entrusting the transportation of one of its freight flows to Fret SNCF. To decarbonize transportation, one of the favored solutions is modal shift, that is, transferring freight from road transport to more efficient modes, such as rail or inland waterways. We at STX Group are glad to help finance part of this project via French Energy Savings Certificates (#CEE), which value and reward the energy savings generated.

Sophie Casenave, Policy Affairs Manager at STX Group, had the pleasure of discussing the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) with Mike Scott at Reuters. Sophie shared her thoughts on the implications of the directive for businesses and differences between the regulation and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), explaining that “while CSRD forces companies to talk about their risks, CSDDD is about doing.” Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/d4pWgdvq

Recent changes in the sustainability reporting regulatory landscape are impacting chemical businesses. How can companies in the industry adapt as expectations shift?  Sophie Casenave, Policy Affairs Manager at STRIVE by STX, was invited by S&P Global's Chemical Week podcast, hosted by Vincent Valk, Senior Editor at S&P Global, to discuss the topic. In the EU, the recent Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) enters into application and will ultimately covers some foreign companies with significant business in Europe, while in the US and elsewhere climate disclosure rules are being discussed. This can put chemical companies, often with a global footprint, in a conundrum, with different rules to comply with in the future and heightened expectations for decarbonisation. A variety of instruments are available to the chemical industry to manage their emissions, including the use of renewable energy across their entire value chain, energy efficiency optimization, bio-feedstocks and voluntary carbon markets.  Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/du-MSfEq #ChemicalWeek

Biofuel supply is currently outpacing demand and many companies are opting for cheaper fossil fuels due to inflation, political uncertainty and a lack of legislation. Koen Heesbeen, Managing Partner at STX Group, spoke to Carel Grol from Het Financieele Dagblad, on the current state of investment in the biofuels industry. “We expect the market to continue to grow over the next few years as there will be better clarity in European legislation and political priorities, incentivizing demand for more sustainable fuels,” said Koen. Click here to read the interview (in Dutch, requires a log-in): https://lnkd.in/dmK9dU7H

Alexandra Veroude from STX Group’s Strategic Projects team, alongside Ruben Tins, Business Development Director focused on biofuels, recently participated in a FuelEU Maritime webinar with NorthStandard and Arcsilea. “Even in its early stages, most operators using conventional marine fuels will need to immediately assess their options to reduce emissions. This can include many LNG vessels, where methane slip can push emissions over the limit. But even for compliant vessels, the regulation will still have influence,” said Alexandra. FuelEU Maritime sets the maximum limits for the yearly average greenhouse gas usage by ships trading in the EU/EEA from 2025. There will be an initial 2% reduction from the current baseline, with further reductions every five years and reaching an 80% reduction by 2050. Biofuels play a key part in the effort to decarbonize the sector. With annual emissions greater than that of Germany, the international shipping industry will need to blend innovation, investment and expertise to continue the transition to net zero. https://lnkd.in/dhRQY5ME

We are pleased to take an active part and share our views at the Green Gas Mobility Summit in Madrid this week, the leading sustainable transport event in the Iberian Peninsula. Over the past two days, experts in their fields have analyzed what we can do to reach climate goals and improve air quality through modern and future technologies like biomethane, hydrogen and its derivatives. Zvonko Ikic, originator in the biomethane team at STX Group, had the pleasure of speaking at the "BioLNG in Europe: driving the energy transition and decarbonizing transport” roundtable, which looked at adoption challenges and innovative solutions such as our partnership with Hapag-Lloyd and Titan Clean Fuels. "The pressure to decarbonize shipping is intensifying due to regulations and customer demand for greener options. A mix of fuels will be essential, with biofuel blends serving as key short-term solutions and methanol and ammonia scaling up by the decade's end,” Zvonko said. "While the long-term future remains uncertain, BioLNG emerges as the most cost-effective biofuel for the marine industry, offering low carbon intensity, easy implementation and significant emission reduction potential".

IETA and Natural Climate Solutions Alliance have unveiled a new paper on the urgent need to finance natural climate solutions. For all our corporate clients out there, here is why we believe it's essential to invest into nature-based climate solutions and why now. The case to invest in NCS today is underpinned by four realities discussed in this paper: 1) The mitigation potential of NCS is higher relative to other abatement options currently available 2) Nature loss is driving near-term threats to economic growth, putting billions of dollars of assets at risk of becoming stranded within the next 5 to 10 years 3) The potential for nature to support mitigation decreases after 2030 as ecosystem functionality and natural carbon sinks pass crucial tipping points due to land conversion 4) NCS can help address challenges beyond climate and economic risk mitigation, and can bring significant benefits to people, communities, and biological diversity. Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/dEbi_hzT