What the circular economy is The circular economy is a development model where the value of the products, materials and resources is kept in the economy for the longest possible time. Instead of being scrapped after being used, the materials are reincorporated in the production cycle as secondary raw materials. Ecodesign, reuse and recycling play a key role in this new economic model, that seeks to minimise waste generation. Driving a circular economy fosters, among other aspects, the creation of new jobs in the following areas: Production of energy from renewable sources Energy efficiency Waste and waste management Air quality Restoring goods and services Increasing recycling Reuse and use of new materials that they are easily recyclable or reusable
Basque Country's "Circular Thinking" Initiative As part of the Circular Economy Strategy of the Basque Country, the Basque Government’s Ministry for the Environment has set up the “Circular Thinking” initiative to foster the circular economy among the socio-economic stakeholders of the Basque Country, and particularly with industry (SMEs and large corporations). Apart from fostering and streamlining the implementation of circular economy processes by companies, this initiative seeks to facilitate the identification of the actions and case studies carried out by companies to act as examples for other organisations, by means of using the “Circular Thinking. The Basque Country towards the Circular Economy” brand.
Demonstration projects Despite the favourable conditions to progress towards the Circular Economy in the Basque Country, they are also numerous barriers that have hindered the application of new solutions to curb waste ending up in landfill, to increase the value of the recycled material or to generate new business lines. A consultation of the different stakeholders involved in the Circular Economy in the Basque Country – including the environmental authorities, companies, their associations and the Basque Science & Technology Network – revealed what needed to be done. That included setting up a programme of specific funding aimed at bringing to market the many innovative solutions already developed at pilot scale, but not proven on an industrial scale. . The aim was to overcome the R&D&i valley of death to provide the market with innovative solutions that come to a standstill due to technical problems, uncertainties regarding certain environmental impacts, the lack of fit with material or environmental standards, lack of financing or because there is no a priori market demand for those new solutions. Download Download This led to the "Circular Economy Demonstration Projects" initiative that was launched in 2014, and which was aligned with the actions envisaged in the "2020 Waste Prevention and Management Plan" and in the "Green Manufacturing" key project of the 2030 Environmental Framework Programme. This initiative has subsequently been repeated with a similar structure, after new business opportunities had been detected as the result of the different Ihobe Technology Watch studies. Those areas include secondary plastics, metal waste, used refractories, critical materials, the reuse of automotive components and the remanufacturing of capital goods.
Life Giswaste projectThe agri-food sector of the Basque Country generates 4 million tons of organic by-products and waste every year. Its management as final waste is a difficult and costly task. However, its recovery and reuse is viable given its high content in nutrients. The European GISWASTE, implemented as part of the LIFE programme and led by the AZTI Tecnalia research centre, in conjunction with LKS, Geograma, and with the support of Ihobe, has developed a methodology and its relevant IT tool combining multicriteria decision-making procedures and geographic information systems (GIS), that facilitate decision making in the management of agri-food by-products. GISWASTE proposes alternatives to recover and reuse dairy, meat and/or plant by-products, by means of the production of biogas or animal feed. By combining geographical information and multi-criteria decision methodologies, GISWASTE provides viability reports regarding recovery and reuse by means of two options: Construction of a biogas production plantConstruction of an animal feed production plant
Ihobe's 2021 Berrindartzea Circular Programme helped 80 Basque companies from 9 sectors to conduct a circular economy assessment and prepare a roadmap. As part of the 2021 Berrindartzea Circular Programme, 80 companies had the opportunity to have an intern, trained in the circular economy and technical support, who helped them to identify their environmental sustainability challenges and to set a roadmap to use environmental management as a way to become more competitive. Based on the work by the companies – along with sector workshops and an additional strategic environmental watch process –, Ihobe, in conjunction with the leading stakeholders, produced a collection of reports that set out the short-, medium- and long-term key pointers of the circular economy for the sectors taking part in the 2021 Berrindartzea Circular. They included including the chemical, food & drink, mobility & logistics, means of transport, the metal, construction, and the electric & electronics sectors. The 2021 Berrindartzea Circular conclusions were set out in a series of sector reports. Download (spanish) The "Sector Key Pointers in the Circular Economy Reports" collection is a useful tool for companies to define their environmental foresight and competitiveness strategies. Furthermore, the public administration can use it to steer environmental policy and face the specific challenges associated to each sectors. All the reports are structured as follows: they start with an assessment of the rationale or drivers, including possible legislative changes that are in the pipeline or recently approved, and market trends regarding customers' new environmental requirements. Furthermore, they describe which companies are potentially affected and the implications of the legislative changes and market trends that may affect them. As regards the legislative changes, special mention should be made of the regulatory package within the European Green Deal, including the Sustainable Products Initiative, the Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Regulation and the proposal of a new Industrial Emissions Directive. When it comes to market trends, on the one hand, trailblazer companies are making great demands their supply chain, as the result of voluntary commitments and strategies, including decarbonisation, circularity and ecodesign requirements. The collection also provides a compilation of innovative tools, from international regulations to sector standards, which are related to the aforementioned drivers to, finally, propose environmentally sustainable sector work lines by means of combining the available challenges and tools.
Measuring the circular economy The Basque Country, in accordance with the guidelines set by Europe, has defined a monitoring board to be able to evaluate its progress towards a more circular economy – thanks to the measurement of a limited set of significant key indicators that help us to study the main elements of the circular economy. This panel will allow us to evaluate the effectiveness of actions at the European and national levels, to identify best practices and differences in performance in specific areas, and to detect the need to take new measures. The study framework covers areas such as food waste, safety of raw material supply, repair and reuse, waste generation, waste management, trade of secondary raw materials, and the use of recycled materials in products. The indicators are based on existing data from Eurostat and other official data sources; all indicators included in the monitoring framework comply with the RACER criteria (Relevance, Acceptability, Credibility, Easiness, Robustness). This monitoring panel is characterized by its comparability with Member States of the European Union, periodic updating, and the existence of time series. Download Download (spanish)
Analysis Circular Economy in the Basque Country The circular economy proposes an evolution of the current economic model, based on extraction, production, use and waste generation, by offering countries, companies and consumers an alternative to grow and compete by reducing dependence on the use of raw materials and increasing wellbeing. In other words, to do “more with less”. Basque industry annually generates 3.5 million tons of waste, 43% of which is untapped and ends up in landfill. Iron & steel, metal casting and paper are the sectors where the greatest amount is generated. Recovery of products and components has generated in the projects conducted in the Basque Country so far greater value added than the recovery of materials, which confirms the hierarchy of the priority lines of work from an opportunity perspective (ecodesign, remanufacturing and upcycling of metals and plastics). However, the costs of raw materials in Basque industry account for 61%, compared to 2% for energy costs, a similar percentage to that of Germany. Furthermore, Basque industry's dependence on imported raw materials is 77% and it is, therefore, necessary to strengthen the current private-public partnership focused on product ecodesign to better harness the potential solutions to close the cycles of key materials. If circular innovative solutions are undertaken, an achievable average potential saving of 6% of that consumption of raw materials is estimated, which would mean savings of €2 billion in Basque industry.. Over 150 industrial companies of the Basque Country are already applying circular practices or models (ecodesign, servitization, remanufacturing, life cycle assessment, environmental declarations, etc.). The main industries that are adopting new "circular strategies”, are in the automotive, transport equipment, electronic and electrical equipment, machine-tool, metal, chemical, furniture and building sectors and environmental services subsector, even though the need to drive the culture of working with other value chain has been detected in companies. The circular economy experiences implemented by Basque companies have led to tangible and immediate results. Therefore, 60% of the companies already working on those approaches point out that it is essential to introduce those criteria in their business or product in order to, among others, make their processes more productive, cut energy consumption, save materials, grow sales, stand out on international markets, open up new markets, improve their image and increase their internal capabilities. Download Download
Download (spanish) In October 2021, the Basque Government approved the 2024 Basque Circular Economy and Bioeconomy Strategic Plan, which seeks to meet a series of challenges, such as driving the creation of new more circular business models; innovating in (advanced and renewable) materials, processes and products; extending the useful life of products; reducing the consumption of raw materials and waste generation; fostering a more circular consumption model; cutting wood waste; encouraging the more efficient use of plastics; increasing waste reuse, recycling and recovery; and increasing the use of secondary raw materials. In turn, it envisages driving the bioeconomy by means of innovative technologies and is committed to a new production and consumption model to support the Basque Country's transition to a more efficient economy. The plan sets specific targets for 2024: Increase material productivity by 30% Increase the circular material use rate by 10% Cut the waste generation rate per unit of GDP by 10% As regards the bioeconomy, its development is still fledgling and the aim is to integrate the environmental, social and economic opportunities and challenges for the Basque bioeconomy based on local, sustainable, diverse and longer value chains.
The plan contains eleven policy lines: New circular and high value-added business models Innovation and new technologies in the circular economy and bioeconomy New sustainable materials; Product and building ecodesign Efficient manufacturing and sustainable exploitation of resources Strengthening the opportunities of the circular bioeconomy Circular consumption Generating market conditions and demand Food waste; Plastic consumption Sustainable waste management Secondary raw materials)These policy lines and actions are aimed at driving the transition of the Basque Country towards a more resource-efficient economy by means of innovation aimed at a new production and consumption model.
BASQUE ECODESIGN CENTER The Basque Ecodesign Center is a stable initiative established in 2011 and structured by a partnership framework between private sector companies and the Basque Government. Its purpose is to design and execute Ecodesign innovative projects for knowledge generation and subsequent transfer to the Basque industrial fabric. The Basque Ecodesign Center has evolved from the specific theme of ecodesign to the broader theme of the circular economy. When the Basque Ecodesign Center started to operate in 2011, its founding members included six private companies of the Basque Country (Cie Automotive, Fagor Electrodomésticos, Gamesa, Iberdrola, Ormazabal Velatia and Vicinay Cadenas) and Ihobe, as the project coordinator and driver. It has since grown to 16 members, as per the agreement for 2021-2025. This 2021-2025 agreement represents a significant mobilisation of the Basque industrial sector towards more sustainable frameworks in keeping with the strategy set by the European Green Deal and the Basque Green Deal. In fact, their member companies represent roughly: Over 185,000 jobs. A turnover of over €50,000 million. Around 15,000 suppliers from around the world, with a high number from the Basque Country. Goals of the Basque Ecodesign Center The main goals of the 2021-2025 Basque Ecodesign Center agreement are as follows: Generate circular economy expertise by means of innovation in the priority areas established in the Basque Circular Economy Strategy, which is transferable to the Basque industrial fabric. Drive the value chain to a more circular economy. Additionally, the secondary goals of the 2021-2025 Basque Ecodesign Center agreement are as follows: Improve the competitive positioning of the partner companies through the circular economy. Play a leading role and become a benchmark in the deployment of the circular economy in the Basque Country. Maintain strategic thinking that helps to align the environmental policies and needs for the companies. Complete the training of professionals in the circular economy. Help to make the Basque Country a benchmark in the European Union as an advanced region in the deployment of the circular economy in the business fabric. BASQUE ECODESIGN CENTER
ETE zirkularra Euskadi The PYME Circular Euskadi programme is a partnership between the Basque Government – through its publicly-owned companies Ihobe and Spri – and business stakeholders that seeks to facilitate the response of the SMEs to specific challenges arising from a changing and increasingly more demanding market and mentor them in their transition to the circular economy. Following on from the work being carried out with the major Basque Ecodesign Center and the line of advanced services fundamentally to attract and train professionals at the Basque Circular Hub, the PYME Circular Euskadi was set up to cover Basque small and medium-sized enterprises that make up 99% of the business fabric. Its aim is to convert Basque SMEs into more circular, more competitive and better positioned organisations. By consolidating inter-business collaborations to address the new European instruments aimed at driving the circular economy ("drivers") Improving the positioning of SMES by means of the green brand (environmental assessment, performance and communication) Generating sustainable business activities that contribute to the green economic recovery of the Basque Country, to improving competitiveness and to creating skilled jobs Increasing the environmental resilience of the territory by means of new circular value chains Achieving compliance of the goals of the 2030 Basque Circular Economy Strategy EThe PYME Circular Euskadi programme has set the target of reaching 500 SMEs in 2024 and has five areas of action. The role of brokers is fundamental in order to achieve that goal and facilitate access of small and medium-sized enterprises to competitive improvement programmes. Areas of Action Development of environmental watch activities to identify market challenges and opportunities in the circular economy. Training and skills-building on the challenges and opportunities detected in Basque SMEs, as well as on the methodological know-how needed to apply them. Implementation of technical projects together with Basque Circular Hub, the centre offering circular economy advanced services located in Bilbao. The only one of its kind in southern Europe, it offers market outlook and advanced training services, along with trend analysis and generating expertise. Allowing for Basque SMEs in the implementation of technical projects with the partner companies of the Basque Ecodesign Center, the private-public partnership between the Basque Government and the 16 leading Basque companies. A programme of specific grants to drive the application of circular economy methods and measures in SMEs, in order to encourage group projects, where approaches and lessons learnt are shared, and coordinated by a broker. Signing up of the stakeholders to the programme and commitments The Basque brokers — clusters, development agencies and business associations — can sign up to the PYME Circular Euskadi programme using this formulario form. All PYME Circular Euskadi partners undertake to: Appoint a representative for the Monitoring Committee that meets three times a year. Help to define and development the activities for the deployment of the 2024 Basque Circular Economy and Bioeconomy Plan, along with the 2030 Basque Circular Economy Strategy. Facilitate information, provided it is not confidential, on matters related to the purposes and activities of the PYME Circular Euskadi programme. Actively disseminate the PYME Circular Euskadi activities among the SMES with which they are in contact as part of their routine operations and organise joint dissemination activities with the other partners. Contribute, based on a common position, to the good management of the PYME Circular Euskadi programme and to its growth and development. Akordio komunean oinarrituta, ETE Zirkularra Euskadi programa ondo kudeatzen, hazten eta garatzen laguntzea. A broker is taken to be any non-profit organisation or business group that provides services and whose purpose is to promote and improve the competitiveness of the companies in its sphere of influence; these include clusters, sector and business associations, chambers of commerce, and supramunicipal and local development agencies.
Circular Economy, Wastes Save 01/06/2023 Circular Economy, Wastes The European Week for Waste Prevention rewards St. George’s School from Biscay for its project to reduce noise by recycling textile materials The St. George's British International School in Leioa (Bizkaia) is the Basque candidacy that, among the 16 finalists of a total of 16,129 actions presented throughout Europe, has won the category of “Educational Center” of the awards of the European Week of Waste Prevention, whose award ceremony has been held in Dublin (Ireland).
Circular Economy Save Circular Economy The European ICEBERG project faces its last year of activity with all case studies in progress 05/05/2023
Circular Economy Save Circular Economy The European Commission recognises Ihobe's ecoinnovation manual and circular products catalogue as examples to follow 24/04/2023
Circular Economy, Ecodesign Save Circular Economy, Ecodesign Public-private collaboration drives 105 eco-innovation projects in the Basque Country with successful circular solutions 25/11/2022
Circular Economy, Ecodesign Save Circular Economy, Ecodesign Eco-designed products from 115 Basque companies show real examples of the Basque Country's commitment to circularity 25/11/2022
Basque Clean Technology ListDOWNLOADThe Basque Clean Technology List of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country is a list of industrial equipment aligned with the energy, environment and competitiveness of the Basque Country. The acquisition of these technologies entails the application of a tax deduction of 30% of the investment cost of the equipment.That equipment has been selected by a technical committee to be included on the aforementioned list given its better environmental performance and its low implementation in the industrial fabric of the Basque Country.The technologies to be included in the Basque Clean Technology List are selected by means of active prospecting by the department of the Basque Government in charge of the environment, with input from the department in charge of industry.Once the technologies have been selected using an ad hoc methodology, they are assessed by the Technical Committee, made up of representatives of the following entities:The Environmental Office.Ihobe, Environmental Management Agency Business Development Agency of the Basque Government, SPRI Basque Energy Board - EVE Tax Coordination Authority After the assessment, the Committee produces a draft List to come into force in the following year. This proposal is published in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country by means of an Order of the Basque Government’s Minister of the Environment and Territorial Policy.The Basque Clean Technology List 2016 includes 92 technologies incorporated in equipment and aimed at the environmentally priority industrial sectors in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country.
Environmental benefitsThe equipment on the Clean Technology List of the Basque Country:Contributes to improving the environmental and energy resultsIncreases the efficiency of the industrial processes in the Basque Country, particularly of the SMEs. Enables smart use and management of raw material. Drives reuse, recycling and recovery. Has a positive global environmental impact. Has a degree of implementation underway, but not fully consolidated on the proposed sector, with positive value being attached to the number of potential facilities to which the technology may be transferred is high. Records better environmental values than those established by current environmental legislation. First and foremost involves preventive technologies compared to end of process ones. Has a positive global environmental impact for the different environmental aspects (air, water, waste, land, energy and noise) and significantly better than other available technologies. Notificación de adquisición de equipos incluidos en el Listado Vasco de Tecnologías Limpias
Tax benefitsDOWNLOADCompanies whose registered office is in the Basque Country may deduct from the Corporation Tax payable 30% of the amount of the investment in any of the full sets of equipment defined in the Order of the relevant Ministry of the Basque Government approving the Basque Clean Technology List.This tax benefit is established in Article 65 of the Corporation Tax Provincial Legislation of the three provinces of the Basque Country and is part of the so-called "deductions with application limits" The following legislation is current in force:Corporation Tax Provincial Legislation 37/2013, of 13 December, (B.O.T.H.A. (Alava Official Gazette) No. 148 de 27-12-13, Supplement and B.O.T.H.A. No. 10 de 27-1-14, Supplement) Corporation Tax Provincial Legislation 11/2013 of 5 December (B.O.T.H.B. (Bizkaia Official Gazette) of 13 December) Gipuzkoa Corporation Tax Provincial Legislation 2/2014, of 17 January, (B.O.T.H.G (Gipuzkao Official Gazette) of 22 January 2014) The tax incentives for the Basque Clean Technology List is in keeping with what is established in Commission Regulation (EU)No 1407/2013 of 18 December 2013, on the Application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid.The temporary and quantitative maximum limits to be deducted by a company, permitted by current legislation, are as follows:Commission Regulation (EU) No 1407/2013 on de minimis aid: The total amount of de minimis aid granted by a Member State to a single company shall not exceed €200,000 during any period of three tax years.Provincial legislation: The deduction for investment in the Basque Clean Technology List is part of the so-called “deductions with application limits”. These deductions can only be applied as up to 45% of the tax payable in a tax assessment. Any amounts not deducted due to a shortfall in the tax liability may be applied in the assessments for tax periods that conclude within the immediately following fifteen years. The calculation of the periods to apply the deductions may be differed until the first financial year where, within the limitation period, profits are posted. Other deductions in the Basque CountryPursuant to Articles 61, 62, 63 and 65 of the Corporation Tax Provincial Legislation, the following remain in the Basque Country:The deduction for investments in new non-current assets (10%)The deduction for research and development activities (30%-50%) The deduction for technological innovation activities (15%) The deduction for investments and costs linked to projects pursuing sustainable development, conserving and improving the environment and the most efficient harnessing of energy sources (15%), specifically to minimise, reuse and recover waste, mobility and sustainable transport, environmental regeneration of natural spaces as the result of compensatory measures or of any other type of voluntary actions, minimising water consumption and its purification, and the use of renewable energies and energy efficiency
List equipmentThe List includes a total of 92 technologies selected for their better environmental performance in the areas of water, emissions, waste, energy, noise, consumption and resources. These are technologies aimed at the environmentally priority industrial sectors of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country.The technologies have been selected for their high innovation component in the sector of Basque industry and for their low implementation in the industrial fabric.CategoriesWaterMicrofiltrationUltrafilitrationIon exchangersActivated carbon filtrationWater recycling facilities for car, lorry and bus washingElectrodialysisElectrocoagulationInverse osmosis (IO)Membrane bioreactorSpray water reuse facilityStatic filter for water intake with mesh size < 10 mmSelf-cleaning fine-grain sieveEmissionsMist extraction and filteringPortable extractor booth with emission purification systemVOC emissions treatment Unit by adsorption with solvent recoverySleeve and/or modular filter for particulates between PM 10 and PM 2.5VOC emission treatment unit by thermal oxidation and heat recoveryDry electrofilter for particulates between PM 10 and PM 2.5Sprinkler installation with additives to minimise the dust in storage areasCuring unit for paints and coatings with low solvent content by ultraviolet raysDamp electrofilter for particulates between PM 10 and PM 2.5Non-catalytic selective reduction with emissions reduction of NOx > 55%Regenerative thermal oxidationCatalytic oxidationLow NOx emission burner (NOx emissions < 100 mg/Nm³ for gas burners, < 300 mg/Nm³ for liquid fuel burners)Fixed venturi tubes (air distributors for water paint booths)Closed mould system - RTM processPhase II gas recovery active system in fuel dispensersTank cleaning closed system with solvent regenerationWelding gas filtration systemIonisation (plasma treatment)Photo-oxidationBiowasherBiofilter for gas treatmentCascade pipes with level detectorsGrading and crushing fixed installation enclosure (applied to the recycling of stony fractions of construction and demolition waste)Laminator that uses solvent-free adhesivesParticulate filters for diesel engines in existing heavy vehicles with Euro I, II or III enginesEnergyIntegrated transformation CentreCompartmentalised Compact Transformation CentreFrequency variatorEnergy Saving ModuleCondensation boilerLow temperature boilerHigh energy efficiency boiler (3 stars)Regenerative burnerFlat flame burnerSubmerged tube burnerCompact microcogeneration unitAbsorption equipment for direct flame cold productionGas engine heat pumpsHigh performance heat pumps (COP > 4)Presence-triggered light regulation equipment for transit areas without natural lightingProbe lighting regulation for buildings with natural light contributionInfrared dryerHeating equipment with air stream combustionFlat solar thermal collector to heat waterVacuum solar thermal collector to heat waterPhotovoltaic solar collectorWind turbinesIce thermal accumulation systemPurge control electronic system in steam generatorsDiode pumped Nd:YAG laserFlexible dispenser for ethanol supplyClimate control equipment by means of residual heat or renewablesElectric vehicleElectric vehicle charging pointsNoiseAbsorbing SilencerResourcesSelf-cleaning mineral filterMixed filter system for grindersAutomatic mixing equipmentIndustrial washer with biodegradable detergentUltrasound cleaning, degreasing and drying machineCoating chamber using steam phase techniques (PVD)Minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) systemDegreasing in closed circuit (activated carbon + vacuum distiller)Recovery installation for excess paint/vanish applied using a spray gunOrganic phosphatation and/or degreasingWasteCoolant filtering mobile equipmentBriquetting pressMetal salt crystalliserHigh pressure wheel washerSludge electric drying for small productionsNon-ferrous metal separatorWaste plastic separatorRFID technology for waste collection and managementCoating and paint stripping by inductionLaser cleaning and surface treatmentVacuum evaporator