The EU’s research & innovation programme can power a cleantech revolution
Translating innovation into world-leading industries is critical, and FP10, the EU’s next flagship R&D funding programme after Horizon Europe concludes, offers a chance to bridge this gap.
The Green Deal era saw Europe embrace ‘Cleantech 2.0’, with record investments and new projects. Yet 2024 has brought a reckoning. Slowing demand in sectors like heat pumps and electric cars, Chinese industrial overcapacity, and attractive subsidies in the US and Canada have left European cleantech struggling to compete.
Closures, layoffs, and stalled projects – including the high-profile collapse of Swedish battery maker Northvolt – have shaken the sector. The EU’s Net Zero Industry Act and the upcoming Clean Industrial Deal aim to support cleantech manufacturing, but catching up isn’t enough.
To lead globally, the EU must focus on the next wave, including new battery chemistries and next-gen renewables – ‘Cleantech 3.0.’
