“Commission's key conundrum: that decarbonization does not turn into deindustrialization” (H. ten Broeke)

“The European Commission's key conundrum is to keep our climate policies and make sure that decarbonization does not turn into deindustrialization,” said Han ten Broeke, Head of Cabinet of Wopke Hoekstra, Commissioner for Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth, during the Ports in transition conference, held in Rotterdam on 18 September 2026.

He added that innovation is “the only way to get through these transitions, and the 'Magpie' and 'Pioneers' projects [that have worked towards the decarbonization of European ports] are one example of what the European Commission can do with its innovative money”.

“And much of the money that the European Commission can spend comes from climate policies,” he said, mentioning the ETS review launched alongside the Electrification Action Plan, “which is no coincidence”.

However, Han ten Broeke identifies some barriers to these innovations. According to him, it is fundamental to involve governments and the private sector, because the European Commission “is not capable of making sure that the innovations will be picked up by the market. That is not our…