European Commission puts forward its proposal for the EU’s next 7-year budget

Yesterday in Brussels, the European Commission presented its proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF – the EU’s long-term budget for 2028-2034). Thanks to new own resources, this budget would reach close to €2 trillion. 

This proposal launches a 2-year long negotiation process with the Council of the EU and European Parliament, before entry into force on 1 January 2028. SolarPower Europe has issued the following statement in reaction.  
 

Dries Acke, Deputy CEO of SolarPower Europe (he/him):   
 

“This EU budget proposal offers important signals for solar but lacks clarity at this stage.  

By boosting support for the clean transition, doubling research & innovation funding, and multiplying energy infrastructure funding fivefold, the European Commission takes a step in the right direction to deliver on the energy transition.
 

The 35% horizontal spending target for climate and environmental objectives will also help direct funding to where it is needed, including renewable energy projects.
 

However, the European Competitiveness Fund is too small and does not provide enough certainty. For reference, €67 billion is the amount of investment needed every year, just for distribution grids. Here, the budget bundles all those priorities together in one basket along with dozens of other areas, assigning a total of €67 billion for 7 years.
 

How can  solar manufacturers, for example, bet on EU support for their projects, without any certainty on the available budget, format, or timeline of funding for cleantech manufacturing?
 

How can storage and smart grid developers bet on EU support when their sector is bundled with heavy industry and building renovations?  

We call on the European Commission to provide clarity on how much funding will be allocated to the pillars of the transition: cleantech manufacturing, distribution grids, and flexibility.”
 

Notes  

• This proposal aims to redesign the budget along three main pillars:
   
  1. National and Regional partnerships worth €865 billion: gathering agriculture and cohesion policy funding,  
  2. The European Competitiveness Fund worth €410 billion: EU-managed funding for businesses, which will be partly funded by the Innovation Fund. It will also partly manage Horizon Europe funding for research & innovation,
  3. Global Europe worth €200 billion: allocations for third countries. Funding for energy infrastructure, media and education are also kept out of pillars 1 and 2.

• The European Competitiveness Fund is split into 4 windows. Window 1, worth €67.4 billion, will support projects in renewable energy, industrial decarbonisation, distribution grids, storage and more. 

© European Union (download here)