Europe’s Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA) has been implemented “too slowly” to revive the continent’s solar PV manufacturing industry, according to a report by the industry group SolarPower Europe.
The group, which represents companies across the European solar industry, argued that the implementation of the NZIA since member states had to introduce its criteria at the start of 2026 has been both slow and “fragmented”. Only six member states have implemented NZIA criteria in public auctions for renewable energy so far, and the differences in approach create “additional complexity for market participants, at a time when the deployment of renewables must be accelerated”, SolarPower Europe said.
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The NZIA currently calls for public procurement programmes and capacity auctions to allocate a portion of their contracts to projects using products from “resilient” sources – meaning non-dominant supplier countries. Effectively, this seeks non-Chinese products.
“We see development in the right direction, but implementation is too slow. That itself is a concern, but more serious is the patchwork approach taken by Member States,” said Anett Ludwig, head of supply chains at SolarPower Europe.
SolarPower Europe called for “a more consistent and balanced implementation so that industrial policy can leverage the potential of the full EU Single Market.” It is asking the European Commission to introduce a repository of national NZIA measures to support a more harmonised approach to the policy.
Solar ‘Made in EU’
Christoph Podewils, secretary general of the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC), another trade group representing the solar component manufacturers on the continent, told PV Tech that member states are “reluctant” to pursue NZIA criteria – even though they are required to by Brussels – because “they see that NZIA auctions in Italy did not favour European products”.
The group said it supports measures to go further than the NZIA and introduce stricter “Made In Europe” criteria for public auctions, not just relying on products from “non-dominant” markets. The Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) announced in March proposes to bring in just such criteria to complement the NZIA. SolarPower Europe also supports this approach, and its deputy CEO, Dries Acke, called the IAA a “watershed moment” for the continent’s solar industry.
“It will be the economy in the member states which will benefit” from Made in EU criteria, Podewils said, “thus providing positive examples to other member states.” The ESMC has long been calling for Brussels to stipulate that NZIA products are made in Europe, while SolarPower Europe has more recently adopted the more hardline stance.
Earlier this month, a group of policymakers proposed that the EU increased its percentage threshold for “made in Europe’ products under the IAA and NZIA, following similar calls from the ESMC to strengthen the provisions.
“The NZIA gives Member States a tool to harness the power of the Single Market. This report shows that much of that potential remains underutilised. The Commission must ensure the NZIA can be implemented easily and consistently,” said Dries Acke.
CleanTech Manufacturing Bank
Acke continued: “To create a prosperous future for European solar manufacturing these demand-side measures alone are not enough. We need financing support, too; a Cleantech Manufacturing Bank under the European Competitiveness Fund, with production-linked financial support. This is essential for any credible industrial policy.”
Production-linked support mechanisms have supported successful solar manufacturing buildouts in the US and India in recent years, with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Production-Linked Incentive (PLI), respectively, fuelling significant investments.
Brussels has been saying it will support European solar manufacturing for a long time, with little meaningful movement. Back in 2024 it announced a “solar charter”, followed by the NZIA and IAA, all of which relied on securing demand in public auctions for certain products. Back in March 2024, the ESMC told PV Tech Premium that the European industry needed direct operational financial support, alongside public procurement measures.
