Sustainable PtX Conference: From Crisis to Opportunity

11:00 – 12:00 Uhr | Arrival and Registration

12:00 – 12:05 Uhr | Opening and Welcome by Dr Constanze Haug, Managing Director Zukunft – Umwelt – Gesellschaft gGmbH

12:05 – 12:20 Uhr | Keynote by Representative Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Engery (BMWE)

12:20 – 12:35 Uhr | Keynote by Dr Harry Lehmann, Director PtX Lab Lausitz

12:35 – 14:00 Uhr | TBA Keynote and Panel Discussion 

14:00 – 14:30 Uhr | Coffee Break 

14:30 – 16:00 Uhr | Sessions (Participation in person only)

• The Role of Power-to-X in Strategic Energy Security: How Much Resilience Can Europe Afford?
• Scaling PtX Resonsibly: Navigating Land Use Conflicts and Biogenic CO₂
• Cross-Sector Synergies in PtL Production, Storage and Logistics Infrastructure

16:00 – 17:15 Uhr | Networking Break with Spreewald Gherkins

• Poster Exhibition in the Galery
• Hotel Check-In

17:15 – 19:00 Uhr | TBA Keynotes and Panel Discussion by

• Rosa Stubenberg, WWF Germany, P2X-Sommerwerkstatt of the Kopernikus Project „Power-to-X: Die globale Energiewende und regionale Transformation“

19:00 Uhr | Conference Dinner and Networking

09:00 – 09:10 Uhr | Welcome Dr Harry Lehmann

09:10 – 10:45 Uhr | TBA Keynotes 

• Dennis Krämer, Senior Advisor Carbon Management, DECHEMA e. V.

10:45 – 11:15 Uhr | Coffee Break with Snacks

11:15 – 12:45 Uhr | Sessions (Participation in person only)

• Reality Check for PtX Chemicals and Lead Markets
• Market-Based Measures in Aviation and Shipping - Learnings from one Sector to another 
• Bankability Check: Are Current EU Financing Instruments Fit to Scale PtL?
• DAC: The Sustainable Solution for Future Carbon Supply?

12:45 – 13:45 Uhr | Networking Lunch Break

13:45 – 14:15 Uhr | Keynote by Joel A. Tickner, Professor University of Massachusetts Lowell, Founder und Strategic Advisor Industrial Transformation, Change Chemistry

14:15 – 14:45 Uhr | Closing

• Dr Harry Lehmann, Director PtX Lab Lausitz
• Anita Demuth, Head of Section PtX Mobilität
• Dr. Sarah Bernhardt, Head of Section PtX Grundstoffe
• Dr. Stefan Günthner, Head of Section PtX Technologie
• Felix Schmermer, Head of Section PtX Policy und Markthochlauf

14:45 – 16:00 Uhr | End of the Conference and Farewell Coffee

The Role of Power-to-X in Strategic Energy Security: How Much Resilience Can Europe Afford?

Increasingly, Europe’s energy and raw material supply is subject to geopolitical tensions, global dependencies, and new international security policies. What role does PtX play for Europe’s energy security, its strategic resilience, and its defence capabilities?  And what conditions must be met for the development of PtX to be effective in strengthening Europe’s security of supply and strategic capacity to act?

This session will feature short keynotes and interactive elements: We will perform a “Resilience Stress Test”: Together, we will evaluate various PtX development paths and discuss opportunities, risks, and necessary framework conditions.

Speaker: 

• Marvin Wenzel, Expert PtX Technology, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Martin Hock, Expert PtX Policy and Market Ramp-Up, PtX Lab Lausitz

How can we implement sustainability criteria for biogenic carbon sources when land use pressures and policy targets differ from region to region?

In this interactive session we will discuss different definitions of sustainability with respect to biomass, biogenic CO2, carbon sequestration, and land use. We will test methods for adapting sustainability criteria to local realities while keeping the global ambition of scaling PtX. Bring your data, experience, and ideas – together we will shape the next generation of climate safe biomass strategies.

Speaker: 

• Dr Reinhard Messerschmidt, Expert, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Olivia Budek, Expert, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Minh Phuong Vu, Expert PtX Technology, PtX Lab Lausitz

Building new infrastructure is costly and requires a commitment to lengthy planning processes. At the regional level, a single industry may not be able to generate the volume of demand required for the economically viable operation of such facilities. However, this could be achieved through the combined demand of various industries, thereby reducing the financial risks for all stakeholders involved.

Which infrastructures are most crucial for PtL production? Should these infrastructures be as compact as possible – or would it make more sense if they were expanded across sectors? This interactive session takes cross-sectoral collaboration at heart, aiming to stimulate discussion on potential synergies between the aviation and maritime sectors, while also considering the chemical industry.

Speaker: 

• Julian Maier, Expert PtX Mobility, PtX Lab Lausitz

Building on the results and reports of the Critical Chemicals Alliance (CCA) Working Group on Lead Markets, this workshop will explore if the proposed market-pull instrument instruments for the EU chemical industry are fit-for-purpose to support demand creation and market-ramp-up of PtX chemicals.

This session combines policy stress testing and participatory prioritisation to identify which instruments are “ready to scale”, “need redesign”, or “not suitable for PtX market ramp-up under current conditions.”

Speaker: 

• Lukas Horndasch, Expert PtX Basic Materials, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Franklin Streichenberger, Senior Policy Manager, CO₂ Value Europe

Against the backdrop of growing concerns regarding the implementation of the EU ETS due to competitiveness issues, administrative burdens and geopolitical pressures, this interactive session aims at taking a closer, cross-sectoral look at market-based measures in the aviation and shipping sectors. The session closely examines the ETS, CORSIA, and the IMO Net-Zero framework. Fostering exchanges between stakeholders from aviation and shipping, we will share best practices and lessons learned from both sectors regarding the following questions: 

• What are the main challenges in the implementation of the market-based measures and how can they be overcome? 
• How do policies need to be redefined and/or adjusted to realize their full potential? 
• Which additional measures are needed?

Speaker: 

• Jessica Nagamichi, Expert PtX Mobility, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Niyanta Shetye, Expert PtX Policy and Market Ramp-Up, PtX Lab Lausitz

Join our interactive bankability session to identify financing gaps for PtL/eSAF projects. Inputs from the project development and think tank perspectives will give insights into challenges over the past years and possible solutions – such as double-sided auctions – for the market ramp-up. 
We will discuss the following questions:  

• What risks hinder bankability of PtL/eSAF projects? 
• Which mechanisms mitigate these risks and where are the gaps? 
• Do EU instruments meet developers’ and financiers’ needs? 
• Can we identify other critical issues that have not yet been addressed in current policy and financing debates?

Speaker: 

• Daniel Stähr, Expert PtX Policy and Market Ramp-Up, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Valerie Tilker-Kwan, Expert, PtX Lab Lausitz
• N. N., NOW GmBH
• Gustav Granberg,  Senior Policy Manager, CO₂ Value Europe

This session will evaluate the role of Direct Air Capture (DAC) in meeting climate targets and its potential to become a truly sustainable carbon source for synthetic fuels, chemicals, and other applications. It will explore the investment conditions needed for DAC projects, identify which applications should be prioritized first, outline short term actions that can accelerate market uptake, and discuss how Germany and Europe can contribute to DAC scale up compared with regions that enjoy cheaper renewable energy or easier CO₂ storage access.

Speaker: 

• Ali Elwalily, Expert PtX Technology, PtX Lab Lausitz
• Lorena Tafur Garzón, Expert PtX Technology, PtX Lab Lausitz