An interview with Kilian Gerbl: With its planned Circular Economy Act (CEA), the EU is pursuing the goal of strengthening the circular economy across Europe and using resources more efficiently through reuse, high-quality recycled products and clear quality standards. This legal framework is particularly relevant for companies such as Electrical Oil Services (EOS®), which have long been supplying new and recycled insulating oils and providing comprehensive support to transformer operators. Read more about the significance of the CEA for EOS® and the industry.
Electrical Oil Services (EOS®) has been consistently focusing on circular solutions since its foundation. EOS® is an expert in recycled and new transformer oils, uses mobile and stationary facilities for oil treatment throughout Europe, and supports energy suppliers, industrial companies, and transformer manufacturers in operating their transformers safely, efficiently, and in a resource-saving manner. We talk to Kilian Gerbl, Managing Director of Electrical Oil Services, about the significance of the Circular Economy Act for the company and the industry.
The Circular Economy Act is a planned EU regulation that will establish binding requirements for the shared circular economy for the first time. Until now, there have been many individual regulations in different member states – the CEA aims to harmonise these.
Among other things, the aim is to strengthen the use of recycled materials and high-quality recycled products and to significantly increase the reuse of resources. For many industrial sectors, this means new requirements, but also new opportunities.
In future, companies will have to work more transparently, document material flows and take greater account of ecological criteria. At the same time, new market potential is emerging through the use of high-quality recycled products, more efficient use of resources and clearly defined quality standards that make sustainable solutions more competitive.
A significant change has been noticeable in recent years: sustainability has gained importance in society and the economy, and customers in the transformer industry are now much more open and willing to actively use circular solutions. The CEA is responding to this development and giving it additional regulatory momentum.
What is the CEA Circular Economy Act?The Circular Economy Act (CEA) is a planned EU framework law that aims to significantly strengthen the circular economy in Europe from 2026 onwards. The aim is to use resources more efficiently, promote high-quality recycled products and create uniform standards for reuse and product life cycles.
The main objectives of the Circular Economy Act at a glance
The CEA thus creates the basis for companies in Europe to operate more sustainably while becoming less dependent on primary raw material imports. |
Several building blocks are central to the CEA. Firstly, the proportion of circular materials in industrial products is to increase – i.e. materials that can be recycled, processed or reused.
Secondly, products should be more durable, repairable and reusable in future. To this end, comprehensive measures are being introduced, such as digital product passports and new eco-design requirements, which enable transparent documentation, traceability and sustainable product development.
Another objective is to strengthen the European market for secondary raw materials: recycled materials, recyclates or high-quality recycled products should be easier to trade, reliably available and less dependent on third countries.
For us at EOS®, these are all areas that we have been actively supporting and promoting since the beginning of our company's existence.
For us, this law is above all a confirmation of our strategic direction. We have been working with both reprocessed and recycled insulating oils for decades. Our recycled EOS Premium transformer oils are of the same quality as new oils. This means we meet the CEA's requirements exactly: keeping materials in circulation, conserving resources and ensuring the reliable availability of high-quality recycled products.
With our mobile and stationary equipment, we can provide recycled insulating oils of the highest quality – as well as new transformer oils when technically necessary. We expect the Circular Economy Act to further strengthen demand for recycled insulating oils, as operators increasingly have to meet sustainability targets or comply with regulatory requirements.
The greatest opportunity is that the CEA creates transparency and trust in high-quality recycled products. Many companies want to operate more sustainably, but need clear standards and reliable quality to do so. This framework law reinforces that – and that is exactly what we offer with our products and services for transformer oils.
Challenges arise primarily in the adaptation of processes: companies must record data accurately, document material flows and systematically verify quality. It is important that regulatory requirements remain practicable, as excessive administrative effort can incur costs.
As a service partner, we already provide support in this area with our comprehensive transformer oil database, laboratory data, documentation, traceability and clearly defined transformer oil processes – topics that began with our Closed Loop approach and are becoming increasingly important as a result of the Circular Economy Act.
For the transformer industry as a whole, the CEA will be an impetus to establish circular business models more strongly throughout the entire transformer life cycle. This is precisely where our services make a contribution: they help to keep transformer oils in operation for significantly longer, both technically and economically. And at the same time, they extend the service life of transformers.
As I said, EOS® is circular by design. Since our foundation, we have been committed to the circular economy, resource conservation and sustainable solutions in the transformer industry.
For us, the CEA is not a break with the past, but rather a logical continuation of a path we have been pursuing for a long time.
We already meet many of the required aspects today – for example, through the treatment of insulating oils, digital documentation, high quality standards and transparent processes. At the same time, we are expanding our capacities to meet the requirements of the coming years.
In addition, we are also involved at European level, including as a member of the GEIR association, the European umbrella organisation for waste oil recyclers. In this way, we are actively contributing our experience to the further development of the circular economy.
In the long term, the CEA will further increase the importance of recycled materials. Operators will need greater transparency, will involve sustainable service partners more closely and will record life cycle data more systematically. For us, this is a great opportunity to actively shape the circular economy in the energy sector and further expand our role as a European expert for sustainable transformer oil solutions.
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FAQ – frequently asked questions about the Circular Economy Act (CEA)What is the Circular Economy Act (CEA) in simple terms? The Circular Economy Act is a planned EU law that aims to keep resources in the economic cycle for longer. Companies are to reuse and recycle materials more frequently and design products to be more durable and repairable. The aim is to reduce waste and decrease dependence on new raw materials. When will the Circular Economy Act come into force? The EU currently plans to phase in the Circular Economy Act from 2026. Once the law has been passed, transition periods will be provided so that companies can adapt their processes, products and documentation requirements. Which companies are affected by the Circular Economy Act? The Circular Economy Act is aimed at all industrial and manufacturing companies in the EU, especially those in sectors with high material and resource consumption. These include the energy, industrial, construction and electronics sectors, as well as companies that work with recycled, reprocessed or secondary raw materials. What role do digital product passports play in the Circular Economy Act? In future, digital product passports will provide standardised information about the materials, origin, composition and life cycle of a product. They increase transparency along the entire value chain and facilitate repair, reuse and recycling. Under the Circular Economy Act, they are considered a key instrument for implementing the circular economy in a practical and measurable way.
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