The Tracker shows that 68 commercial-scale net-zero-aligned plants are currently operational, and 42 are at Final Investment Decision. More than 700 must be up and running by 2030, according to MPP's industry-backed milestones for decarbonizing key sectors in line with the Paris-aligned ambition. To meet these deadlines, FID must be reached within three years to enable construction this decade. Bridging the current gap and scaling near-zero solutions adequately requires an almost seven-fold increase in the number of plants that have achieved FID to date.
The encouraging news is that companies have issued a wave of project announcements in the past 12 months, indicating growing industry ambition and a shift towards more favorable conditions emerging in some locations. Plans to build 473 commercial-scale decarbonization plants are identified on the Tracker, which, if brought to FID, would reduce the gap by 80%.
However, analysis by MPP indicates that many projects struggle to get from announcement to FID, which means that the current pace of progress is too slow. Various economic and policy barriers can be identified that stall projects. The study identifies 595 plants that must now be brought to FID across aluminum, cement, chemicals, steel, aviation, and shipping – within three years to meet 2030 deployment goals. The trucking target measures zero-emission trucks on the road, and millions more need to be operational this decade.
No sector is currently on target, and time is running out to get on course. Most progress is seen in aviation, with Sustainable Aviation Fuel blending mandates and subsidy schemes driving projects to operation in Europe and the US. 15% of the target has passed FID.
There has been a marked increase in the green ammonia pipeline, with announcements now exceeding the 2030 target, supported by demand signals from the shipping and fertilizer sectors. The question is how quickly these plans can reach commercial scale.
MPP's Tracker uses aggregated data to chart investment progress into net-zero-aligned projects, with updates every three months to reflect changes during this critical period. It is the first publicly available tool to combine all seven sectors and visually depicts a progress pipeline indicating a project's status ranging from announced to FID and operational.
Today's flagship projects prove that technologies are maturing, and announced projects show the opportunity to create critical mass and realize new markets for clean industrial products. However, the economic and policy barriers must rapidly be tackled to create widespread bankability for announced projects while encouraging the development of many more.
Dick Benschop, Interim Chief Executive Officer of the Mission Possible Partnership, said, "We have a new level of insight into the decarbonization trajectory for heavy industry and transport – and the rising ambition of industry is clear. But with the planet's future hanging in the balance, there is no hiding from the challenges ahead. We need to rapidly unlock the barriers that can transform plans into plants. MPP is committed to addressing the collective action needed, and we urge all stakeholders to contribute."
Rob van Riet, Interim Head of the First Movers Coalition, World Economic Forum, commented, "Gaining increasingly granular insights into where net-zero aligned projects are globally emerging is critical to accelerating and scaling collaborative action between offtakers, suppliers, financiers and policymakers towards industry decarbonization … The tracker thus serves a key role in informing committed companies on where they may find the supply and partners needed to implement their commitments."
The Global Project Tracker is now live at tracker.missionpossiblepartnership.org and maps the location and status globally of net-zero-aligned assets across seven sectors. It enables industry groups to identify potential partners or green hubs, financial institutions to see potential investment options, and policymakers to track progress in their regions and inform decision-making. With quarterly updates, MPP will continue to chart the levers that can unlock progress in bringing a critical mass of projects to realization this decade.
