Strengthening Lead Markets in the Industrial Accelerator Act

The Clean Air Task Force recommends that the EU increase its 2029 public procurement mandates for low-carbon steel to 50% and low-carbon concrete and mortar to 10%. It argues that the current IAA proposal is insufficient to drive investment and suggests expanding mandates to 100% by 2040. The report also proposes extending these requirements to private construction projects over 1000 m2 and private automotive fleets by 2032, while broadening the scope to include low-carbon plastics and fertilisers.

• The proposed 25% public procurement quota for low-carbon steel is insufficient because public procurement is only a small part of total demand; increasing the mandate to 50% by 2029 would create a demand of 7.9 Mt, which is achievable given planned capacity.
• For cement and concrete, the report recommends increasing the 2029 procurement target to 10% (approximately 4.6 Mtpa of cement) and further to 30% by 2032 to support the scale-up of CCS-equipped facilities and low-clinker blends.
• The report suggests narrowing the 'disproportionate costs' exemption in Article 11(3)(c) by clarifying that the 25% cost threshold should be assessed against the total contract value rather than the incremental cost of the low-carbon materials.
• To ensure long-term decarbonisation, public procurement mandates should not remain static but should progressively increase to reach 100% coverage of public demand by 2040.
• The report proposes extending low-carbon material mandates to the private sector by 2032, specifically for construction projects exceeding 1000 m2 of usable floor area and for commercial vehicle fleets in the automotive sector.
• The scope of the IAA should be expanded to include plastics used in construction, with a proposed obligation of 30% by 2029 rising to 100% by 2040, and a proposal for demand-side mandates for fertilisers by 2029.

APA

Clean Air Task Force (2026). Strengthening Lead Markets in the Industrial Accelerator Act. https://www.catf.us/resource/strengthening-lead-markets-in-the-industrial-accelerator-act/

Chicago

Clean Air Task Force. Strengthening Lead Markets in the Industrial Accelerator Act. 2026. https://www.catf.us/resource/strengthening-lead-markets-in-the-industrial-accelerator-act/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Clean Air Task Force |title=Strengthening Lead Markets in the Industrial Accelerator Act |date=23 June 2026 |url=https://www.catf.us/resource/strengthening-lead-markets-in-the-industrial-accelerator-act/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cleanairtaskforce2026strengthening, author = {{Clean Air Task Force}}, title = {{Strengthening Lead Markets in the Industrial Accelerator Act}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2026}, month = jun, url = {https://www.catf.us/resource/strengthening-lead-markets-in-the-industrial-accelerator-act/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }