AkzoNobel brings coatings progress to COP31
AkzoNobel is highlighting how coatings, collaboration and innovation can help industries use resources more efficiently and build resilience as COP31 focuses on zero waste, clean energy transition and resilient industrial development.
COP31, taking place in Antalya, Turkey from 9 to 20 November 2026, has identified 10 priorities through its Action Agenda, with the most relevant priorities for the industrial coatings sector including: Clean Energy Transition and Electrification; Zero Waste; Climate-Resilient Cities; Green Industrialization; and Food Security.
Job Coenen, head of sustainability at AkzoNobel, will attend COP31 alongside Kemipol, AkzoNobel’s Turkish joint venture partner for Coil & Extrusion, Wood Finishes, Vehicle Refinishes and Specialty Coatings. Their participation reflects the value of global ambition, local partnership and practical customer insight.
While COP31 is taking place in Turkey, the priorities in the Action Agenda are global in nature. The COP31 priorities align with work AkzoNobel’s Industrial Coatings business is already doing around the world, across three distinct but connected areas:
- Prepainted metal coatings: helping coil coaters assess renewable energy curing to move from gas ovens to renewable electricity to reduce energy use and reduce waste; providing COOL CHEMISTRY coatings to help reduce energy demand in buildings.
- Wood finishes: equipping built environment customers with lifecycle research to inform more sustainable building choices, while also helping manufacturers transition to electricity-based UV LED curing.
- Packaging coatings: working with can makers and brands to protect food, support shelf-life, and respond to evolving regulatory expectations, with the aim of reducing food waste.
Progress across all these areas depends on collaboration between coatings manufacturers, customers, suppliers and other partners.
Reflecting on the need to connect ambition with delivery, Job Coenen said: “Climate action depends on moving from ambition to implementation. AkzoNobel has achieved its 2030 SBTI approved carbon reduction to halve Scope 1 and 2 emissions four years ahead of schedule, but continued progress depends on working across the value chain. COP31’s focus on clean energy, zero waste, resilient cities and green industrialisation reflects the need to use resources more efficiently and build systems that can perform for the long term – all areas that we are actively supporting our customers with.”
AkzoNobel Packaging Coatings addresses packaging priorities through food protection, shelf life and regulatory readiness. Coatings help protect food during storage and distribution enabling access to nutritious food in food deserts, while innovation helps manufacturers and brand owners respond to concerns about substances, circularity and climate impact.
AkzoNobel’s COP31 participation builds on work with customers, suppliers and partners across the coatings value chain. It is working towards halving carbon emissions across its full value chain by 2030 (using a 2018 baseline) and carbon neutrality by 2050.
AkzoNobel hosted the Pre-COP31: NL Connect Meeting on 3 November at its Amsterdam headquarters. Organized by the Netherlands British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC), the UN Global Compact Network NL, and ICC Netherlands, the Pre-COP31 meeting provided an opportunity for the Dutch COP31 community to exchange plans and explore how they can work together before and during the climate conference. Climate Envoy of the Netherlands, Jan Versteeg opened the conversation by sharing the main priorities for COP31 with attendees from Dutch businesses, as well as government officials and others working on climate action.
