Mandate:    -   Creation of the Working Party on Industrial Decarbonization’ approved during the 22-23 February 2023 CERT meeting [IEA/CERT(2023)5; IEA/CERT/C(2023)1 and IEA/CERT/M(2023)1.

- Extension of the 2023 mandate until 31 December 2025

[IEA/CERT(2025)1] and to 30 June 2026 [IEA/CERT(2025)21] approved by written procedure.

- Change of name to ‘Working Party on Industry’ and new mandate for 2026-2028 approved by the CERT at its 10-11 March 2026 meeting [IEA/CERT(2025)16/REV3; IEA/CERT/C(2026)1 and IEA/CERT/M(2026)1].

 

Extract from Document [IEA/CERT(2025)16/REV3 Annex III]

 

MANDATE OF THE WORKING PARTY ON INDUSTRY

 

Objectives

The IEA Working Party on Industry (WPI) will serve as the principal advisory body to the IEA’s Committee on Energy Research and Technology (CERT), the IEA Secretariat, and other IEA Standing Groups and Committees (as appropriate) on matters relating to industry. Noting the IEA Shared Goals, the objective of WPI is to ensure that the development and deployment of energy-related technologies for heavy industry realise their promised contribution to global and national policy objectives. The WPI will seek to enhance the quality and impact of the IEA’s work in these areas by supporting the CERT to oversee and coordinate relevant Technology Collaboration Programmes (TCPs)5, facilitating policy exchange among IEA Members on topics of importance for their individual national policy objectives, and providing the IEA Secretariat with strategic advice and support for its data collection, tracking and analysis.

Scope

In its second term, the WPI is expected to continue and deepen many of the activities from its first term, while also expanding its work to encompass additional activities aligned with IEA Members respective priorities. When preparing its Strategic Plan for the term 2026-2028, the Working Party is encouraged to include the following topics, which members can choose to participate in according to their interests:

• technical enablers and conditions for policy implementation, including:

o industry-related technology innovation, scalability, costs and commercialisation, including economic analysis of conventional and new technologies and their production output, and

o interoperable, transparent emissions measurement methodologies;

• market-related developments, such as tracking technology trends, projects, demand commitments off-take agreements, and the use of standards, including related to low-emissions materials;

• factors affecting industrial competitiveness, energy security, and emerging opportunities in industry material supply chains;

• enablers of market creation and private sector investments that improve performance and cost competitiveness, such as with respect to efficiency, emissions reduction; reliable sources of energy; and

• policy options, selection and development, including drawing from the IEA’s Policy Toolbox for Industrial Decarbonisation.

• The primary expected outcome is supporting governments to further strengthen their policy frameworks for the heavy industry sectors in accordance with their respective priorities.

Functions

WPI's specific functions may include:

• working together and, where appropriate, producing collaborative outputs, on particular matters of mutual interest related to the heavy industry sectors;

• exchanging best practices, experiences and lessons learned on policies for supporting technology development and uptake in heavy industry, including exchange between advanced, emerging and developing economies;

• collecting and sharing data to track progress, such as updates on innovative technology demonstration projects, data on procurement or latest government policy developments;

• providing strategic direction into the work of the IEA Secretariat; and strengthening the ties between the IEA Secretariat's analysis and government policy development on matters related to the heavy industry sectors;

• facilitating exchange of information and co-operation among industry-related TCPs, including through TCP coordination groups, and between industry-related TCPs and senior officials of IEA Members participating in WPI, seeking to provide strategic guidance to their work and exploring potential priority research areas and gaps in international research co-operation;

• providing updates and advice to the CERT on the accomplishments and future plans of the Working Party and the TCPs for which it provides oversight;

• facilitating a means for governments and their industry organisations to stay apprised of key global technology developments in the sector more broadly, via connections to other relevant stakeholders; and

• exchanging strategic input where appropriate with other relevant platforms and initiatives, such as through sharing of ideas, data and analysis, and seeking collaboration to maximise effectiveness while avoiding duplication.