Net-Zero Industry Act to further accelerate decarbonisation technologies manufacturing in the EU

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

Today, the European Commission has taken further steps to support the EU’s transition to a low-carbon economy. Four new pieces of secondary legislation and a communication relating to the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) will help the EU’s industry to become more resilient, competitive and reduce their carbon footprint. These rules clarify which manufacturing projects can benefit from specific provisions in the Act, such as on permitting, strategic project status and on non-price criteria. They will help scale up the manufacturing of net-zero technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and leverage the competitive advantage of the EU’s clean tech industry. 

The Commission has today adopted the following acts:  

Components primarily used for net-zero technologies under the NZIA  

The NZIA strengthens EU manufacturing of net-zero technologies including their key components. Today’s act clarifies the scope of NZIA through listing specific components for which the NZIA requirements will apply. 

Rules on non-price criteria in renewable energy auctions  

The Commission adopted rules for the inclusion of certain non-price criteria in Member State auctions for renewable energy deployment. These criteria include responsible business conduct, cybersecurity, and sustainability and resilience contribution. Starting on 30 December 2025, the new rules must be applied to 30% of auction volumes (or 6 GW per year per EU country).  The act provides more detailed parameters to help harmonise how Member States apply these rules to ensure better visibility for businesses, while allowing some flexibility. Well-designed, objective and transparent criteria that reward higher value-added products can better support a sustainable, innovative and resilient manufacturing industry.  

Main specific components relevant for the NZIA access to markets chapter 

The Commission adopted an act listing net-zero technology final products and their main specific components. This list helps identify which products may trigger the mandatory application of the non-price criterion of “resilience.” This means that, in certain public procedures, contracting authorities must consider supply chain resilience alongside price when selecting technologies or suppliers, i.e. contracting authorities in these cases should not simply select the cheapest option. This criterion must be applied in public procurement, renewable energy auctions, and other forms of public intervention, when there is excessive dependency on a single source of supply for one of these products.  

Communication on shares of Union supply 

The Commission adopted a Communication providing information on where the EU’s supply of net-zero technologies comes from, highlighting third country dependencies for specific technologies. This information enables the application of the ‘resilience’ non-price criterion in public procurement, renewable energy auctions, and other public interventions in order to diversify the technology sources. Additionally, it helps Member States in evaluating net-zero technology manufacturing projects eligible for strategic project status. 

Common criteria on strategic project selection  

The NZIA allows net-zero technology manufacturing projects to apply for “strategic project” status. Strategic projects benefit from ‘priority status’ at national level, which ensures rapid administrative treatment and financial advice. The act adopted today ensures a consistent selection process across Member States, through guidance on the applicable criteria for that project selection. The Commission encourages Member States to use the application process on the Commission website to reduce administrative burden. This website provides specific guidance on certain selection criteria such as those centered around “first-of-a-kind”, “best available technology”, and “significant” manufacturing capacity”.   

Background  

The adopted texts took into account the input received via the call for feedback on four of the acts earlier in the year. It also follows discussion among Member States in the relevant experts’ groups and comitology committees. 

For the Delegated Act, following today’s publication, the European Parliament and the Council have a 2-month scrutiny period (extendable by a further 2 months if requested), during which they can object to this Act. There is no scrutiny period for the Implementing Acts adopted today.