EU is unwittingly driving towards a “Sustainable Jobless Economy”

The EU adopted the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability & Green Deal Objectives to build a resilient 21st century economy. To meet EU Green Deal objectives, the EU will need to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and develop sustainable renewable energy sources like wind and solar. Unfortunately, the EU is undercutting its own stated objectives by proposing to ban those materials that enable the same Green Deal.

The recently published Joint Research Center foresight report[1] for EU commission highlights the importance of certain materials that are required in the generation of renewable energy. This report assesses the EU’s material needs for these and other key technologies, as well as current and future vulnerabilities. While hundreds of billions of euros have already been spent or committed by industry for achieving autonomy in technologies of strategic importance, the vulnerability of the upstream value-chain – the “nuts and bolts” that comprise the building blocks necessary for Green Deal industrial development – has become a cause of concern.

A critical component of this upstream value chain is a group of 38 substances called fluoropolymers. Fluoropolymers are high performance substances that offer unmatched performance in various applications required to meet the EU’s Green Deal objectives. For example, out of the fifteen technologies listed in the JRC report, nearly all require fluoropolymers.

Fluoropolymers are used in extreme temperatures, have high resistance to corrosion, chemical attack and ultraviolet radiation, very low coefficient of friction, low permeation rates, ultra-high purity, excellent electrical properties, biocompatibility, durability, and fire safety. Fluoropolymers are expensive and are in general