Today (25 March 2025), SKAO and the European Commission launched the CO₂ Performance Ladder Europe Community of Practice (CoP) on the EC’s Public Buyers Platform. This CoP will help public buyers integrate the CO₂ Performance Ladder into their procurement strategies, setting clear targets and embedding structural CO₂‑reduction measures. The CoP was unveiled during the annual Big Buyers Working Together event in Helsinki.

The CO2 Performance Ladder is increasingly finding its way outside the Netherlands and Belgium. In several European countries, namely France, Germany, Ireland, Portugal and the UK, the Ladder is increasingly being used in public tenders. The CoP helps to share the knowledge and experience gained and focuses on the practical implementation of a proven GPP best practice.

Public Buyers Platform

The CoP is part of the Public Buyers Platform (PBP) of the European Commission (EC). This platform is a unique initiative of DG Grow, the department of the EC committed to a strong internal market and responsible for the EU directives on public procurement. The PBP now has 24 CoPs focused on different topics with a total of more than 2000  members.

The Public Buyers Platform is in line with the EC’s strategy to make public procurement more strategic in the EU through better cooperation between public procurers, policymakers and other stakeholders. The Platform also focuses on joint action in sustainable procurement through which DG Grow helps facilitate the implementation of green, socially responsible and circular procurement across Europe.

Benefits of the CoP

The CoP will be facilitated by the owner and manager of the Ladder, the Foundation for Climate Friendly Procurement and Business (SKAO in Dutch) and its European partner organisations. By joining this CoP, contracting authorities can gain knowledge and share experiences. What challenges do other parties encounter when deploying the Ladder and how do they deal with them? What works and what does not?

Participants will also learn about the CO2 Performance Ladder as a successful and proven Green Public Procurement tool. Contracting authorities will have access through the CoP to valuable case studies, resources, links and materials to get started with the Ladder. Members can also get support in their own language from local partners and experts based in their own country. Furthermore, members can ask their questions directly to SKAO and partners.

Power of sustainable procurement

The launch of the CO2 Performance Ladder Europe CoP should help governments meet climate targets. Within the EU, public procurement accounts for 15 per cent of GDP but also 11 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions.

This huge size and the purchasing power of national, regional and local governments, positions sustainable procurement as a key lever for accelerating industry decarbonisation. The CoP supports members in a practical way to green public procurement.

Big Buyers Working Together annual event

The CO2 Performance Ladder Europe Community of Practice was officially announced by DG Grow’s Innovation and Procurement policy officer Anita Poort at the Big Buyers Working Together annual event today. This event brings together all CoPs of the Public Buyers Platform and takes place this year on 24 and 25 March in the Finnish capital Helsinki.

Deze afbeelding heeft een leeg alt-attribuut; de bestandsnaam is Helsinki-EC-Cop.jpg
From left to right: Maud Vastbinder (SKAO), Elisabeth Muller (SKAO) and Danko Aleksic (EUROCITIES, key lead of the big buyers platform)

Join the CoP

Are you a contracting authority from Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Portugal,  the Netherlands or the UK and do you want to learn more about the CO2 Performance Ladder, its impact and the strategic deployment of GPP? Then join the Public Buyers Platform and become a member of the CO2 Performance Ladder Europe Community of Practice.

Find more information at Communities | Public Buyers Community.