On November 15th, at the facilities of BOSCH TERMOTECNOLOGIA in Aveiro, the Public Session for the Presentation of the ILLIANCE Agenda took place.

The ILLIANCE Agenda, led by BOSCH TERMOTECNOLOGIA, S.A. and financed by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), aims to address the objective of carbon neutrality associated with the buildings sector, through an approach that is based on the development of complementary technologies associated with three fundamental pillars: health, comfort and sustainability.

The ILLIANCE Agenda consortium is composed of 29 entities, of which 17 are companies, 9 ENESII, 2 Clusters and 1 association.

The main objectives of this session were to present the Agenda, its objectives and work developed to date and also to promote reflection on the Challenges of Decarbonization - Carbon Neutrality.

The event kicked off with the opening session, which included the intervention of Jónio Reis (BOSCH TERMOTECNOLOGIA), who pointed out the importance of a strong, transformative and resilient Portuguese industry in the face of the needs of national and international markets.

Next, Nelson Ferreira (BOSCH TERMOTECNOLOGIA) presented the ILLIANCE Agenda, highlighting not only the efforts of the different partners of the Agenda in the development of solutions and products aimed at decarbonization and circularity in the buildings sector, but also the results resulting from these projects, including the estimated design and commercialization of new products.

After these presentations, the panel "Challenges of Decarbonization - Carbon Neutrality" followed, which was moderated by João Veloso (University of Aveiro) and with the participation of António Ricardo Oliveira (OLI - Health Systems), Paula Vilarinho (University of Aveiro), Tiago Sacchetti (Bosch Industry Consulting) and Nuno Baptista (ADENE - Energy Agency).

Of the main challenges faced by the Portuguese industry in the decarbonization of its products and processes, the inadequacy of legislation and the lack of stability in the rules for the measurement of sustainability indicators along the different production chains were highlighted and discussed. The need to adopt reliable technology and qualified labor for the development of new solutions was also mentioned, as well as the efforts associated with the change of paradigms within the industry, which lead to constraints in changing production processes.

In addition, the implementation of alternative technologies to stimulate the decarbonization of the sector was highlighted, including the use of green hydrogen, the capture of emitted CO2, and the efficiency in the use of the industry's own resources.

The closing session was in charge of Eduardo Anselmo (CCDR Centro) who highlighted the relevance of attracting and retaining knowledge in Portuguese companies, promoting synergies between innovative ideas and funding available in the Central Region for the promotion of concepts and tangible results aimed at the carbon neutrality of buildings.

The event culminated in the Technological Demonstrator Space, where a moment of networking was held between all participants in this session and in which it was possible to learn about some of the products developed under the Agenda, such as new Heat Pumps, and Hydrogen Combustion Equipment, and also a set of Innovative and Intelligent Dynamics for domestic spaces that will improve the energy efficiency of homes, produced and presented by the different partners of the ILLIANCE Agenda.