European Parliament approve the Net-Zero Industry Act

Today in Strasbourg, at the last plenary session before European elections, MEPs approved the Net-Zero Industry Act. The move follows the provisional agreement of the law in February, and marks the finalisation of the NZIA. The last step will be a rubber stamp from EU Competition Ministers on 24 May 2024. SolarPower Europe has issued the following statement in reaction.  

Dries Acke, Deputy CEO of SolarPower Europe (he/him):  

“The importance of the Net-Zero Industry Act can’t be understated and is demonstrated by its rapid negotiation and conclusion – few EU laws are introduced and agreed within a year.  

The implementation of the NZIA must now be as rapid as its adoption. It’s an essential piece of the industrial strategy puzzle, which will substantially improve off-take visibility for EU solar manufacturers at this critical time. 

The subsequent Implementation Act of the NZIA must ensure that the new public procurement rules are applied consistently and sensibly across the EU. Rules should respect the different starting points of each net-zero technology.

We would deeply encourage Member States to ensure that the resilience principles of the NZIA are adopted as soon as possible – with solar manufacturers in peril, there is no time to lose.  

Of course, the NZIA is only one part of the story, while landing the NZIA sends a strong signal, it doesn’t negate the need for emergency support and for a structural EU fund for scaling solar manufacturing soon. Some manufacturers have weeks left of survival, this emergency requires urgent action from EU and national authorities.” 

Notes 

• In public procurement and parts of energy auctions, EU countries now have the possibility to reward project bidders based on non-price criteria, like sustainability or resilience. 
• This criteria will apply to a minimum of 30% of auctions initially. This is a positive, measured, approach, which will help EU solar manufacturers finance project pipelines, knowing that there is reliable demand for their product. This also means the rest of the auction market should remain unaffected, maintaining the necessary pace of solar deployment. To guarantee this win-win, we encourage member states to act swiftly, while respecting the 30% threshold.  
• Germany and Austria have attempted to implement resilience principles under the NZIA, with little success so far. 
• The NZIA will be revised in coming years, via ordinary legislative procedure, to map out the trajectory towards 2030 and beyond. This is a sensible ‘walk before we run’ approach. 
• In the European Commission’s intervention in the plenary chamber, they indicated that there will be a follow up event on competitiveness of NZIA technologies, ahead of the meeting of EU Competition Ministers in May.  

Christian Ehler MEP, Rapporteur (lead MEP) on the Net-Zero Industry Act, pictured in the European Parliament Strasbourg on 25th April 2024 © European Union 2024 (download here)