Publications

he Clean Industrial Transition Monitor by the European Climate Neutrality Observatory (ECNO) assesses real-world progress using more than 50 indicators and provides a comprehensive and nuanced picture of both progress and remaining gaps. 

ECNO's analysis is structured around 13 building blocks of the transition, tracking six-year trends across nearly 146 indicators, as well as the expected impact of climate-related public policies.

On the cusp of the Age of Electricity, Europe is on a mission to both strengthen industrial competitiveness and accelerate decarbonisation. The European Commission’s Clean Industrial Deal serves as the blueprint to deliver this ambition.

The Industrial Accelerator Act: a stepping stone or paradigm shift? A reading of the European Commission’s propos

Energy prices, cost of low-carbon equipment, and public aid: how will the evolution of these factors in 2026 impact the ability of middle-income households to invest in the transition?

Subsidising projects is no longer enough. Without secured demand and a coordinated targeted European framework, the French and European green industries risk skidding to a halt on the road to scale.

What industrial policy should we pursue to support domestic cleantech, to secure our energy and industrial sovereignty?

The European Competitiveness Fund is the EU's best shot at financing its green industrial policy – if it is designed and targeted correctly.

The transition to a clean economy is not only a project of laws and targets : it needs to be built. France is leading the way in Europe, with France 2030 as the blueprint.

Faced with this reality, France and the European Union face a fundamental choice: adapt or fall behind. Building a decarbonised, “Made in Europe” industrial base is not one policy option among many

Since 2005, the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) has been a cornerstone of Europe’s climate policy. With the price per tonne of CO2 now beginning to stabilise at between €60 and €80, and the gradual reduction in free allowances, 2026’s review of the system should be an opportunity to reflect on and upgrade its performance as the EU continues towards climate neutrality.  

One year ago, Mario Draghi warned that Europe was becalmed in treacherous waters. Fading competitiveness, trade disputes to east and west, and a growing political mutiny against the green transition make the way forward hard to navigate. This year, however, the EU has begun to find its bearings – guided by the Competitiveness Compass, with decarbonisation as the north star of the Clean Industrial Deal.

Europe is levelling up its industrial policy. From the Clean Industrial Deal to proposals for a more flexible EU budget, the Commission signals new ambition to build scale in strategic cleantech sectors and strengthen Europe’s decarbonising industrial base. Yet this firepower risks losing impact if spread too thinly. Limited resources demand sharper focus. As the Draghi Report made clear, Europe must act strategically: understand its industrial strengths and vulnerabilities, prioritise the sectors that matter most, and align funds, regulation, and institutional capacity accordingly. 

Europe is making progress on the clean transition, but the pace is too slow across several parametres. ECNO’s analysis is structured around 13 building blocks of the transition, tracking changes in the six-year trend for nearly 150 indicators and also the expected impact of policies – a new addition to this year’s report. In the 2025 edition, we also analysed the changes through the lens of broader EU objectives, namely competitiveness, resilience, and citizens’ well-being. 

With Member States meeting this week to discuss the progress and future of EU R&I funding at the Competitiveness Council a group of civil society, research and cleantech organisations, including I4CE, have today issued an open letter urging EU policymakers to put clean technology research and innovation (R&I) at the centre of the bloc’s long-term […]

The EU needs to secure its own green industrial base and foster new alliances. Central to success of the Clean Industrial Deal is a thriving cleantech manufacturing base, which can help Europe reduce emissions, create quality jobs, and enhance economic resilience. This analysis written in February by the European Climate Neutrality Observatory (ECNO which I4CE is a partner) reveals critical challenges for EU industry that can inform policy-making under the Clean Industrial Deal.

The EU Competitiveness Compass has made connecting decarbonisation and competitiveness a “strategic imperative” for Europe. This will be delivered by the all-important Clean Industrial Deal – the flagship policy package on which this new Commission hopes to upgrade Europe’s industrial base and tackle the climate crisis simultaneously.

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.'

A step forward for green industrial policy, or another stumbling block. Context. The world's largest economies are turning towards green industrial policy to support their cleantech manufacturing to accelerate their decarbonisation, competitiveness, and economic resilience. In this cleantech race, the EU has several disadvantages, including higher costs of energy and labour, a less dynamic investment environment, and the impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act and Made in China 2025.

Ursula Von der Leyen’s competitiveness agenda is grabbing headlines - but the hard work of climate implementation and investment is only just beginning. In this blog, Ciaran Humphreys and Dorthe Nielsen outline the challenges this era of implementation poses, and how to align climate ambition with the President’s economic vision.  Ursula Von der Leyen has been re-elected as Commission President – and by a wider margin than expected. Before the vote, she set out her political priorities for the next EU mandate. Her vision focused on themes of security, economic competitiveness, and enlargement – unsurprisingly so at a time when the EU is increasingly concerned about its place in the world.