In a joint letter to EU policymakers the solar industry in Europe sets out its recommendations for an effective implementation of the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA). It is initiated by SolarPower Europe and is supported by APSTE and other 21 European national solar associations.
The Net-Zero Industry Act, a crucial piece of legislation aimed at bolstering the EU’s Clean Industrial Deal has successfully been published in June 2024. It sets the goal to reach at least 30 GW of operational solar PV manufacturing capacity by 2030 across the full PV value chain. This act is designed to ensure that the EU remains at the forefront of clean technology manufacturing and deployment, ultimately contributing to the bloc’s ambitious climate targets and to reshore solar manufacturing to Europe.
The implementation of the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) on renewable energy auctions applies to the segment of at least 30% of the volume auctioned per year per Member State or alternatively to at least 6 GW per year per Member State.
With the legislative framework now established, the focus shifts from negotiation to implementation at the Member State level. This transition is critical, as the success of the Net-Zero Industry Act hinges on effective and coordinated action across all EU Member States.
The Implementing Act of the NZIA is currently being drafted, and will set the details of how resilience and sustainability criteria will be applied in public auctions. For EU Member States to successfully implement the NZIA rules and for the solar manufacturing sector to succeed at growing again, we ask the European Commission to ensure that the Implementing Act contains the following elements:
- develop a solar PV value chain in Europe without impacting deployment – the implementation of the Net-Zero Industry Act should in no case become a barrier to the development of solar PV. It would be a great contradiction if a regulation that seeks zero emissions in the industry delayed achieving this objective.
- set clear guidance to the EU Member States – the Implementing Act must provide a clear guidance to the EU Member States on how to implement non-price criteria for the solar PV sector. Non-price criteria only work if they are technology-specific, clear and transparently calculated based on public and objective methodology. They should be effective and a few in order to reduce unnecessary bureaucratic burdens and minimise additional administrative costs.
- use resilience and sustainability as award criteria – non-price criteria should only apply to a part of the auction market as is outlined in Article 26. For solar, we recommend a share corresponding to volumes of around 5GW in 2026 and 30GW in 2030 across EU, in line with the NZIA goal. Such approach creates a clear space for specific “solar resilience auctions”, giving much needed offtake visibility for European solar products while avoiding complexifying the rest of the auction market.
>> Read the full text of the Joint letter here
>> More information at www.solarpowereurope.org
