EU invests €4.8 billion of emissions trading revenues in innovative net-zero projects

The Commission has today selected 85 innovative net zero emission projects to receive €4.8 billion in grants from the Innovation Fund to help deploy cutting-edge clean technologies across Europe. The 2023 call for proposals awards for the first time projects of various sizes (large, medium and small, as well as pilot projects) focusing on clean technology manufacturing. This is the biggest call since the launch of the Innovation Fund in 2020, with an increase in the total amount of support to €12 billion and a 70% increase in the number of projects.

The selected projects are located in 18 countries: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden and Norway. They cover a wide range of sectors in several categories: energy-intensive industries, renewable energy, energy storage, industrial carbon management, net zero emission mobility (including maritime and aviation) and buildings.

The selected projects must be in place by 2030 and, in their first ten years of operation, are expected to reduce emissions by approximately 476 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, contributing to the achievement of Europe’s decarbonisation targets, reducing emissions from sectors that are particularly difficult to decarbonise, strengthening European industrial production capacity and reinforcing the technological leadership and resilience of Europe’s supply chain.

Successful applicants are due to sign their grant agreements with the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) in the first quarter of 2025.

Further information: European Commission