Beyond carbon emissions reductions: Examining the co-benefits of industrial decarbonisation in the United Kingdom

Industrial decarbonisation reduces greenhouse gases emissions and also deliver broader economic and social gains. We synthesise co-benefits of decarbonising energy-intensive industries in the United Kingdom by combining a scoping review with evidence from over 60 Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre (IDRIC) projects. We asked where, how and for whom co-benefits arise at R&D and early deployment stages, and what technology-policy pairing unlock them. Using a reproducible coding framework, we classify co-benefits into four clusters, i) environmental and health; ii) energy cost and productivity; iii) innovation, skills, and jobs; and iv) energy security and system resilience. Across our classification, frequently reported benefits include improve local air quality, reduced energy intensity and operating expenses volatility, workforce upskilling and new roles in emerging value chains, and reduced exposure to imported fuels via electrification, hydrogen, and CCUS. Because the evidence base is R&D-weighted, many benefits are anticipated rather than realised and are contingent on enabling infrastructure, market design, and standards. We propose a short reporting system to standardise co-benefits documentation and improve comparability. Our study reveals where targeted policy and investment can most effectively convert potential co-benefits into tangible outcomes at cluster scale.