EU flags are seen outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 6, 2023. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)
The Green Deal Industrial Plan is the EU's response to the U.S. administration's Inflation Reduction Act, a plan signed last August that includes about 369 billion U.S. dollars in incentives for climate and energy-related programs.
BRUSSELS, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The leaders of the European Union (EU) member states decided to take pragmatic steps to advance work on the bloc's Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age, Charles Michel, president of the European Council, said on Friday.
These steps include making state aid available for targeted and temporary support; increasing the flexibility of EU funding; ensuring access to raw materials and simplifying the regulatory environment to help foster greener industry; boosting skills; and closing investment gaps through private and public investment.
"The discussion on competitiveness in the EU is rooted ... in a very wide consensus: we need to reach climate neutrality by 2050, and we want the European clean tech industries to help us get there," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said as she presented the plan to the participants in a special EU summit here on Thursday.
A vehicle passes the building of the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 18, 2022. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)
The Green Deal Industrial Plan is the EU's response to the U.S. administration's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a plan signed last August that includes about 369 billion U.S. dollars in incentives for climate and energy-related programs.
EU leaders and industries have voiced their concerns over the IRA, whose provisions could have significant repercussions on the competitiveness and investment decisions of the EU industry, in particular as regards sectors crucial for its transition to a green economy.
"We are very strong advocates of fair competition also on the global stage," von der Leyen said. "This is particularly true in the clean tech sector, and as I said, we welcome competition in this area."
Loading equipment operates at a coal yard of a thermal power plant in Berlin, Germany, Jan. 9, 2023. (Xinhua/Ren Pengfei)
The Green Deal Industrial Plan has four pillars: a predictable and simplified regulatory environment; faster access to funding; enhanced skills; and open trade for resilient supply chains.
The EU clean tech industry already has a head start, according to von der Leyen, and the aim is now to preserve this.
While the emphasis is on making state aid flexible, von der Leyen underlined that all four pillars are interdependent.
The next step will be for the European Commission to present concrete proposals by mid-March, when the European Council will hold its next session. ■
