Dear readers, (27/03/2024)

👋 Welcome to the seventh and last edition of the Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy Newsletter.

Towards a net zero future: Reflecting on the Covenant of Companies’ successful journey (27/03/2024)

[Editorial]

Unlock the path to net zero emissions: New Guide on Clean Energy Transition (27/03/2024)

Our new guide on Clean Energy Transition has been published! From developing clean energy transition plans to addressing sector-specific challenges for SMEs, this newly published guide provides a comprehensive roadmap to identify, assess and implement emissions reduction measures successfully.

Clean energy support schemes: An overview of Belgium (27/03/2024)

Belgium is not only the country currently holding the rotating EU Presidency but is also a land of opportunities for Belgian companies seeking to start their decarbonisation journey.

EU steps up renewable energy cooperation with Azerbaijan (27/03/2024)

The second Ministerial Meeting of the EU-Azerbaijan Green Energy Advisory Council took place in Baku earlier this month, co-chaired by the European Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson.

A high-resolution energy consumption atlas to shape future EU energy infrastructures (27/03/2024)

Zooming in on areas as small as 1x1 km, this new atlas provides data on energy demand and looks into energy scenarios until 2050. It makes for a powerful tool for policymakers and infrastructure planners working on the energy transition.

Stakeholders invited to submit feedback to a call for evidence on innovative forms of solar deployment (27/03/2024)

The European Commission has published a call for evidence as part of the preparation for recommendation and guidance on innovative forms of solar energy deployment. Interested stakeholders are invited to submit their feedback until the call closes on 2 April 2024.

Masterclass: Adopting Solar Photovoltaics (PV) (27/03/2024)

Adopting Solar Photovoltaics (PV) offers companies cost savings through reduced energy bills, environmental benefits through lowering their carbon footprint, as well as energy independence and long-term investment potential.

Dear readers, (19/12/2023)

👋 Welcome to the sixth edition of the Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy Newsletter.

CCCE at the Smart City Expo World Congress 2023 (19/12/2023)

The Covenant of Companies participated as a trusted partner in the 2023 edition of the Smart City Expo World Congress, which took place in Barcelona from 7 to 9 November 2023.

Check out the top post on X (formerly Twitter) of December about the Covenant of Companies (19/12/2023)

Engage with the Covenant of Companies on social media by using the hashtag #CovenantOfCompanies!

COP28: From global visions to local actions (19/12/2023)

The 28th edition of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) took place in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December 2023, serving as a strong incentive for nations, organisations and individuals to come together and address the pressing need for climate action.

Meet BergHOFF, one of Belgium’s most promising sustainable companies (19/12/2023)

Located in Beringen, a town in the Belgian province of Limburg, BergHOFF Belgium is a distributor of kitchen and cooking tools with sustainability at the core of its operations.

CCCE at the SME Assembly 2023: “No Net Zero without SMEs” (19/12/2023)

The CCCE was at the SME Assembly, the most significant event for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Europe, that took place this year from 13 to 15 November in Bilbao, Spain.

Conference: Translating the EU Green Deal into local action (19/12/2023)

On 15 March 2025, the Belgian EU Presidency will be hosting the conference on Translating the EU Green Deal into local action.

Take your first decarbonisation steps with the Covenant of Companies (19/12/2023)

The CCCE is currently pausing applications for Bronze, Silver and Gold pledges. Fear not, this suspension has no impact on those companies that have already made these important commitments.

30 Renewable Islands for 2030 - Ready, Set, 30! (19/12/2023)

The EU islands' call for applications of interest for 30 renewable islands for 2030 has concluded, and the EU islands secretariat is thrilled to announce the selection of 30 islands and island groups from 10 European countries ready to lead the way towards a sustainable future.

CCCE at the Covenant of Mayors Investment Forum 2023 (19/12/2023)

The 2023 edition of the Covenant of Mayors Investment Forum on Energy Efficiency Finance Marketplace took place in Brussels on 25 October.

Dear readers, (03/10/2023)

👋 Welcome to the fifth edition of the Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy (CCCE) Newsletter!

Our community of CCCE pledgers keeps flourishing across Europe (03/10/2023)

We are thrilled to announce that our community of environmentally conscious businesses across the EU does not stop growing: 21 companies from 8 different EU countries have already made a pledge with the Covenant of Companies since the call was launched!

New country guides published (03/10/2023)

We have yet another exciting announcement – we have published new country guides available on the CCCE website!

SOTEU 2023: What’s in for EU companies in their energy transition? (03/10/2023)

Last month, the much-anticipated State of the Union Address (SOTEU) by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took place.

Covenant of Mayors Investment Forum 2023 (03/10/2023)

Join the 2023 edition of the Covenant of Mayors Investment Forum - Energy Efficiency Finance Market Place, to take place in Brussels on 25 October!

SME Assembly 2023 (03/10/2023)

The SME Assembly is the most significant event for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Europe. This year it will take place on 13-15 November in Bilbao, Spain.

Smart City Expo World Congress 2023 (03/10/2023)

The Covenant of Companies will participate as a partner in the 2023 edition of the Smart City Expo World Congress, to take place in Barcelona from 7 to 9 November!

Welcome to our new partner, RE-Source! (04/10/2023)

We are thrilled to announce that RE-Source, Europe’s leading forum for corporate renewable energy sourcing, has become one of our CCCE trusted partners.

The EEN helps companies in their transition to more sustainable business models (03/10/2023)

The Enterprise Europe Network, the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises, can help European companies turn the challenges of moving to a more sustainable business model into an economic opportunity.

LEAP4SME conference: “Supporting SMEs in the Net-Zero Age: From Audits to Savings” (03/10/2023)

Under the title “Supporting SMEs in the Net-Zero Age: From Audits to Savings”, the LEAP4SME Final Conference on took place in the Residence Palace in Brussels on 4 July 2023.

Check out the top post on X from last month about the Covenant of Companies (03/10/2023)

Feel free to like, share and engage with the Covenant of Companies on social media by using the hashtag #CovenantOfCompanies!

Takeaways from the last CCCE Steering Committee meeting (16/06/2023)

On 26 April, the Steering Committee of the Covenant of Companies came together to reflect on the progress we've made and to cast our gaze towards the exciting and important work that lies ahead.

Join the excitement: capture the essence of EU Islands this summer! (16/06/2023)

As summer gets closer, long-awaited holidays approach and with them, plenty of opportunity for beautiful photographs!

Dear readers, (16/06/2023)

👋 Welcome to the fourth edition of the Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy newsletter!

Check out the top tweet about the Covenant of Companies in the past month! (16/06/2023)

Like, share and engage with us on social media using the hashtag #CovenantOfCompanies.

Polish company Plast-Farb shares its positive experience with the Covenant of Companies (16/06/2023)

Thanks to the Covenant, many companies have already embarked on their own net zero journeys and joined a community of environmentally conscious businesses working to reduce their emissions.

Watch our Pledging & Technical Assistance webinar (16/06/2023)

Discover how the CCCE pledging scheme and technical assistance work in practice by watching our dedicated webinar.

🗞️ Here are the top 5 energy news items that you should read today: (16/06/2023)

Meet the Covenant of Companies at EU Sustainable Energy Week (16/06/2023)

The European Sustainable Energy Week is here! From 20 to 22 June, Europe's biggest annual event dedicated to renewables and efficient energy use in Europe is back for its 2023 edition.

New guide published: understanding science-based targets (16/06/2023)

A guide to Science-Based Targets.

Call for application of interest for 30 renewable energy islands (16/06/2023)

Get ready to dive headfirst into the Clean energy for EU islands’ call for the application of interest for 30 renewable islands for 2030.

The DEESME & streamSAVE final event materials (16/06/2023)

Missed out on the streamSAVE & DEESME final event “From potentials to achievements: Unlocking the power of energy savings”?

Policy Session: Powering up small and medium-sized enterprises: policy measures and digital tools to support renewables and energy efficiency (16/06/2023)

On Thursday 22 June, in the framework of the #EUSEW2023, the Covenant of Companies will feature in the session ‘Powering up SMEs: policy measures and digital tools to support renewables and energy efficiency’, organised in cooperation with the European Commission’s Directorate for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW).

New guide: exploring e-tools (19/06/2023)

Analysis of e-tools supporting SMEs in reducing greenhouse gas emissions

Make a pledge now and embark on your net zero journey! (16/06/2023)

The Covenant of Companies recently launched a brand-new pledging scheme that supports European companies on their decarbonisation journey.

Second Technical Assistance in practice (16/06/2023)

Now let’s assume that you are a company that has already made a pledge. What can you expect now?

Need guidance for your green transition? Looking for funding? (16/06/2023)

The Committee of the Regions has something for you!

Earn visibility for your efforts! (16/06/2023)

But there’s more!

A busy end of year (31/12/2022)

Dear readers, welcome to the third edition of the Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy newsletter. Today is the last day of 2022, meaning we have 9863 days until 2050 – when our net zero future must begin.

Technical Assistance: European SMEs on the pathway to decarbonisation (31/12/2022)

In June 2022, the Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy (CCCE) launched its first call for Technical Assistance.

Country-specific guides to energy-support schemes (31/12/2022)

Companies and business organisations which were not eligible for the CCCE’s first Call for Technical Assistance can still benefit from insightful information on how to optimise their energy consumption in their country.

RePowerEU: additional funding to speed up renewable energy projects (31/12/2022)

The EU is facing unprecedented challenges in our economy and energy supply. The RePowerEU plan is a response to the hardships and global energy market disruptions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Launched in May 2022, the plan aims to save and produce clean energy and diversify EU energy supplies.

Eco-friendly hostel in Estonia (31/12/2022)

With energy bills are rising all over Europe, companies are putting in place measures to reduce their ecological footprint, both to cut costs and save the planet at the same time.

First CCCE Steering Committee meeting! (31/12/2022)

The Steering Committee of the European Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy met for the very first time in a hybrid format in Brussels on the 26 October 2022. It gathered a total of 31 participants with one mission: to keep encouraging and supporting European companies to step up their contribution to a clean energy transition and climate action.

Covenant of Companies goes to Prague (31/12/2022)

The Covenant of Companies was officially presented on 29 November in Prague, Czech Republic, during a session entitled ‘’No Net Zero without SMEs: launching practical support for energy transition’’.

CCCE at COP27 (31/12/2022)

From 6-20 November, leaders and representatives from all over the world met in Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt, to take part at COP27 and to discuss the next actions towards achieving the world’s collective climate goals as agreed under the Paris Agreement.

A long, cold winter in prospect (19/09/2022)

Hello dear readers, and welcome to the second edition of The Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy newsletter! It is Tuesday, 20 September 2022, meaning we have 9,965 days until 2050 – when our net zero future must begin.

Last chance: apply for assistance now! (19/09/2022)

Are you a company, a group of companies, an authority, or an ‘enabler’ of business (such as an association or network)? Are you based in Croatia, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands or Poland?

What is this assistance about? (19/09/2022)

The hands-on assistance programme offers applicants a variety of services to choose from, including assistance in carrying out energy audits, assessing appropriate technologies, implementing clean energy projects, identifying avenues of financial support and many others.

Extraordinary Energy Council Conclusions (19/09/2022)

Following an Extraordinary Energy Council this month, European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson outlined the actions that the European Commission is proposing in a press conference.

Could we have already passed key climate tipping points? (19/09/2022)

A new study published in Science this month suggests that the Earth may have already moved beyond a ‘safe’ climate state – and the further above 1.5 degrees we go, the stronger the likelihood is that key climate tipping points could be passed.

Digitalisation of Urban Energy Systems (19/09/2022)

Our partners of the Smart Cities Marketplace have recently published a new paper entitled ‘Digitalisation in Urban Energy Systems’.

The Covenant of Companies asks…David Lammers (19/09/2022)

For this edition of the newsletter, we caught up with our Steering Committee member David Lammers, Deputy Director for Corporate Engagement, CDP Europe.

The energy efficient bakery (19/09/2022)

Times are tough for Europe’s small businesses. Stories are racking up of companies who are suspending operations or shutting down as a consequence of exorbitant energy bills.

Energy Saving Tips (19/09/2022)

Back in April, the European Commission and the International Energy Agency (IEA) outlined a range of simple measures that can be taken by companies and individuals alike to reduce energy use that would save enough oil to fill 120 super tankers and enough gas to heat almost 20 million homes if adopted universally across the EU.

European Sustainable Energy Week: 26-29 September (19/09/2022)

European Sustainable Energy Week is taking place from 26-29 September in Brussels and online.

SME Assembly: 28-30 November (20/09/2022)

The SME Assembly is the most significant event for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Europe.

Energy crisis squeezes smaller firms that power Europe’s economy (19/09/2022)

The energy crisis brought on by Russia’s war of aggression on Ukraine is squeezing the small and midsize firms that form the backbone of the European economy, leading some business owners to curb production or close up.

Top Tweet of the month (19/09/2022)

Check out the top tweet about the Covenant of Companies this month!

Webinar: Supporting Companies in the Race to Net Zero (19/09/2022)

In June the Covenant of Companies held a webinar for companies, to introduce the programme of technical assistance that the Covenant offers and explain the application process.

Welcome aboard our journey to net zero! (16/06/2022)

Good morning dear readers, and welcome to this inaugural edition of The Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy newsletter! It is Tuesday, 21 June 2022, meaning we have 10 056 days until 2050 – when our net zero future will truly begin.

The Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy - what is that? (17/06/2022)

If you’ve subscribed to receive this newsletter, you probably have some idea of what the Covenant of Companies is and does. Maybe you’re familiar with the term ‘covenant’ as an accord, agreement or pact. And you’ll certainly be familiar with what a company is – chances are you run one, work for one, or work with them; or any combination of the above. So, you have likely understood that we’re catering to a collection of companies who have clean energy concerns top of mind.

We're here to assist you - and here's how (17/06/2022)

So, you’re a European company, authority or ‘enabler’ of decarbonisation of businesses – that is, a local energy agency, a business association, or an energy service company, and you’re interested in getting involved with the Covenant. But what’s in it for you?

How does the Covenant know what support companies need? (17/06/2022)

Tailored hands-on support from a team of experts to help you reduce your energy footprint and your bills? And for no charge? That all sounds very tempting … but how can you be sure that the Covenant can cater to your business’ specific needs?

REPowerEU: fast forwarding the green transition (17/06/2022)

On 24 February 2022, we all woke up to a changed world. A darker world, where war on the continent of Europe had once again been waged. The fallout of Russia’s unjustified war has been felt across the globe, adding a humanitarian crisis and a commodities crisis to crises already brought on by the pandemic.

Cluj-Napoca Municipality's 'Retrofit Kit' (17/06/2022)

While we have been preparing the way for the launch of our technical assistance services, our partners in the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy have been busily implementing some great solutions to reduce their energy consumption. Check out this story from the municipality of Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

Technical Assistance Webinar: 23 June 2022 (17/06/2022)

The next event on our radar is the launch webinar of the Covenant of Companies’ technical assistance on Thursday 23 June.

Cities Energy Saving Sprint (17/06/2022)

Another Covenant of Mayors initiative we are glad to promote is the Cities Energy Saving Sprint.

Top tweet of the month (20/06/2022)

Check out the top tweet about the Covenant of Companies this month!

Meet the Covenant's Steering Committee (17/06/2022)

The Covenant of Companies for Climate and Energy will be assisted by a Steering Committee (SteerCo), composed of experts in the field of energy efficiency and carbon neutrality.

Jennes: a climate-conscious car dealership (17/06/2022)

For this issue’s hints and tips, we caught up with Rudi Jennes, a Belgian entrepreneur who owns Jennes Garage, a car dealership with five different locations across Belgium, boasting more than 200 employees and using an array of innovative solutions to clean up his energy footprint. Here’s what he had to say.