Photo: EUSEW
Author: Irene Paoletti, EU Project Manager, Energy Efficiency in Industrial Processes (EEIP), a EUSEW partner organisation
Industry in the EU is decarbonising, and at the same time becoming more resilient and competitive in order to meet long-term climate and energy EU objectives. Yet the role of industrial symbiosis, often overlooked in industrial and energy policies, remains underexploited. By effectively connecting industry and cities, urban industrial symbiosis offers a powerful pathway to reduce energy demand, strengthen resilience and unlock systemic efficiency gains.
No one said the EU’s climate and energy transition would be simple, and it’s not. Still, this transition is opening many opportunities to explore for long-term wider societal benefits. One opportunity remains. To practically connect industry and communities to work together in the development of a symbiotic relationship in sustainability. Urban industrial symbiosis transforms locality into a partnership. It unlocks structured exchanges in which one actor’s excess heat, by-products, or services become another’s input. The concept of circularity becomes a shared experience.
Energy efficiency remains the European Union’s most cost-effective energy resource, yet major opportunities are still lost at the interface between industry and cities. Urban industrial symbiosis addresses this gap by creating local energy loops that reduce primary energy demand and emissions across multiple sectors at once.
The benefits of a shared experience
These systems are not static. Early projects demonstrate feasibility and added value. Follow-up initiatives benefit from shared data, clearer business practices, and established governance arrangements. What starts as a single exchange can evolve into a virtuous cycle of continuous efficiency gains, driven by peer learning and replication. This partnership becomes a long-term win-win.
Just as communities become more resilient when neighbours cooperate, regions become stronger when cities and industries work together. Symbiotic systems planned at district or metropolitan scale can stabilise local energy supply, reduce exposure to volatile energy prices, and strengthen security of supply.
For industry, this translates into lower operational costs, reduced risk and greater predictability. For cities, it delivers more robust energy systems and local value creation. These shared benefits reinforce participation, making urban industrial symbiosis not only an environmental solution but a competitiveness strategy aligned with the objectives of the European Union.
From good intentions to investable systems
Experience shows that urban industrial symbiosis does not develop automatically. While technical solutions are essential, organisational and institutional factors are often decisive. These include access to data, legal clarity, trust between partners, and the development of robust business models, particularly where exchanges involve organisations of different sizes.
Successful initiatives, therefore, rely on dedicated coordination structures or neutral third-party facilitators. Much like trusted community figures in neighbourhood energy transitions, these facilitators can help align interests, manage exchanges, and ensure continuity over time. Their role is crucial to move beyond isolated pilots and towards stable, investable systems that can support industrial planning, infrastructure development, and long-term energy efficiency gains.
Making cooperation contagious
Fortunately, there are several EU-funded projects related to industrial symbiosis that can shed light on the benefits, explain how to implement, and convince companies and local authorities to take action. These projects demonstrate feasibility and impact. The next step is taking these lessons and mainstreaming in the marketplace: embedding governance models, energy efficiency criteria, and standards into policy frameworks, infrastructure planning, and investment decisions.
Making the unknown known
Urban industrial symbiosis is complicated, bringing many actors together in a symbiotic, sustainability-oriented relationship. These actors hardly know each other because they often link businesses and public administrations. Very often, civil society too. It has proven to work, and it builds a real community bond addressing common long-term sustainability objectives.
Importantly, there are many long-term benefits. EU-funded projects such as REDOL are providing a level of confidence through an impressive track record of experience in different countries under different contexts. EU’s industry understands that this is an important turning point for change to address new regional and global market conditions. Industrial symbiosis has an important role to play to make the unknowns better known. Importantly, we are all learning.
This opinion editorial is produced in co-operation with the European Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) – the biggest annual event dedicated to renewables and efficient energy use in Europe. EUSEW2026 marks the 20th edition and will once again bring together the community of people who care about building a secure and clean energy future for the next generations.
Disclaimer: This article is a contribution from a partner. All rights reserved.
Neither the European Commission nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission is responsible for the use that might be made of the information in the article. The opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and should not be considered as representative of the European Commission’s official position.
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