Author: Arnes Biogradlija

Europe’s plastics recycling industry is warning of an accelerating crisis as plant closures and investment shortfalls erode its ability to support the EU’s circular economy targets. In a letter to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, major trade bodies including EuRIC and Plastics Recyclers Europe cautioned that soaring energy costs, regulatory fragmentation, and intensifying global competition are pushing the sector into recession. The warnings come against stark production data. EU plastics output contracted by 13.3% between 2018 and 2022 and fell another 8.3% in 2023, leaving annual production at 54 million tonnes. At the current trajectory, volumes could soon…

Electric vehicle adoption in the Philippines is moving into a new regulatory phase. On Sept. 9, the Department of Energy (DOE) issued Department Circular DC2025-09-0015, amending earlier EV Recognition Guidelines with the goal of creating a clearer and more harmonized classification system. The update, which takes effect Sept. 20, 2025, is intended to align fully with the Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act (EVIDA) and streamline oversight as the market expands. The circular builds on DC2023-05-0012, which first established a framework for EV classification. The latest update goes further by consolidating definitions and requiring stakeholders to provide more consistent data. Manufacturers…

Europe’s automotive and energy transition is colliding at the battery cell. Volkswagen Group, through subsidiaries PowerCo and Elli, is now positioning itself at the center of this shift with three announcements: a test vehicle running on QuantumScape’s solid-state battery, the series-ready Unified Cell slated for mass-market EVs, and a 40 MWh stationary energy storage system to be connected in Salzgitter in 2025. The timing reflects the growing urgency of Europe’s bid to secure battery sovereignty. With the EU aiming for 100% new zero-emission car sales by 2035, and with grid operators struggling to integrate intermittent renewables, the performance and cost…

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has improved its standing in the global low-carbon transition, with its Circular Carbon Economy (CCE) Index score rising to 41.5 in 2024 from 37.7 in 2023. The index, developed by Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC), benchmarks 125 countries on climate progress across four pillars: reducing, reusing, recycling, and removing emissions. While the latest figures reflect momentum in renewable deployment and carbon management readiness, they also reveal the structural tension between Gulf climate ambitions and the region’s ongoing reliance on hydrocarbons. The GCC’s strongest gains came in the Performance Index, which…

The Philippines generates an estimated 2.7 million metric tons of plastic waste annually, with roughly 20% leaking into oceans, rivers, and waterways, according to World Bank data. Against this backdrop, the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) is advancing a circular economy model in the Davao region, seeking to shift from clean-up campaigns to systemic waste reduction through reuse, repurposing, and extended producer responsibility (EPR). At the 7th Environmental Summit in Davao City, EMB Director Jacqueline A. Caancan underscored the limits of current approaches. The pivot reflects a broader recognition that plastic waste is not only an environmental and public health issue…

Morocco’s water crisis has deepened into its seventh consecutive year of drought, with per capita water availability falling to just 606 cubic meters annually—far below the United Nations’ scarcity threshold of 1,000 cubic meters. With more than 72% of its population now living in cities, the pressure on coastal aquifers and limited surface resources is intensifying. At Stockholm Water Week 2025, Moroccan officials, ICLEI, and academic partners presented the Morocco Urban Circular Water Resilience Initiative, supported by Germany’s Federal Ministry and GIZ. The program positions Marrakech, Safi, and Kenitra as testbeds for circular water strategies designed to close the loop…

Europe’s annual production of more than 2.1 billion tonnes of waste underscores the scale of the challenge facing policymakers and industry alike. The European Union’s response, centered on the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), is designed to dismantle the linear “take-make-dispose” model and replace it with systems that extend product lifecycles and conserve materials. For companies operating in complex global supply chains, this regulatory shift is more than a compliance requirement—it is a structural transformation of procurement, design, and distribution. Professor Christian Heinrich, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Carbmee, frames the issue with stark clarity: over 80 percent of…

Australia generates more than 76 million tonnes of waste annually, according to the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Roughly 27 million tonnes end up in landfills, leaving policymakers and industry searching for technologies that can reduce both waste and emissions. Against this backdrop, Murdoch University has launched its Algae Innovation Hub in Western Australia, positioning algal biotechnology as a tool to reshape how industries manage carbon, water, and materials. The Hub, developed under the Harry Butler Institute and led by Professor Navid Moheimani, targets three converging challenges: wastewater treatment, CO2 sequestration, and the development of…

By 2025, India’s industrial landscape faces a structural pivot as circular economy principles begin to replace the entrenched linear model of “take, make, dispose.” With a population surpassing 1.4 billion and growing resource scarcity, the pressure to reconcile industrial expansion with sustainability is acute. NITI Aayog estimates that circular practices could unlock trillions of dollars in economic value while significantly lowering the country’s carbon footprint, making circularity both an environmental necessity and a strategic economic lever. Manufacturing illustrates the shift most clearly. Tata Motors’ expansion of its vehicle scrappage and recycling program highlights how automakers are attempting to align with…

Thyssenkrupp’s potential annual carbon certificate costs of €500 million against operating profits of just €260 million expose the financial pressure driving Germany’s steel sector toward hydrogen transition, yet infrastructure delays and policy uncertainty threaten industrial viability across the Rhine-Ruhr region. The disparity between the global green hydrogen market’s projected growth from USD 12.31 billion in 2025 to USD 199.22 billion by 2034 at a 41.46% CAGR and Germany’s stagnant deployment reveals fundamental disconnects between market expectations and operational realities. The Hy Summit Rhine-Ruhr conference in September 2025 highlighted these contradictions, with industry leaders describing an environment where euphoria has shifted…