European Industries to Benefit from the Clean Industrial Deal
Faced with rising energy costs and intensifying global competition, European industries require urgent support to maintain their competitiveness and drive sustainable growth. The newly introduced Clean Industrial Deal aims to transform decarbonisation into an economic opportunity by implementing targeted measures to lower energy prices, create high-quality jobs, and foster a business-friendly environment.
The Clean Industrial Deal outlines specific actions to strengthen industrial production across all sectors, with particular attention to:
Energy-intensive industries such as steel, metals, and chemicals, which require immediate assistance to decarbonise, transition to clean energy sources, and navigate challenges including high operational costs, unfair international competition, and complex regulatory frameworks.
The clean-tech sector, which plays a crucial role in ensuring Europe’s future industrial competitiveness. This sector is fundamental for industrial transformation, circular economy principles, and achieving decarbonisation goals.
By addressing these critical areas, the Clean Industrial Deal seeks to enhance the resilience and sustainability of European industries while reinforcing their global leadership in clean technologies. The initiative sets a clear path for turning climate objectives into a source of industrial innovation and economic strength.
Main Elements of the Clean Industrial Deal
Affordable energy: Lowering energy costs through clean energy deployment, market integration, and efficiency improvements.
Boosting demand for clean products: Implementing the Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act and revising public procurement frameworks to prioritize sustainability and EU-made products.
Financing the clean transition: Mobilising over €100 billion through state aid frameworks, Innovation Fund enhancements, and InvestEU modifications.
Circularity and access to materials: Securing critical raw materials, establishing an EU Critical Raw Material Centre, and adopting a Circular Economy Act to improve material reuse.
Acting on a global scale: Launching Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships, reinforcing trade defence mechanisms, and streamlining the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
Skills and quality jobs: Establishing a Union of Skills, investing in workforce training, and expanding Erasmus+ funding to address skills shortages.
Horizontal enablers: Cutting red tape, leveraging the Single Market, promoting quality jobs, and improving policy coordination at EU and national levels.