Experts gather to lay down case for European Solar Initiative

Organised by EIT InnoEnergy and SolarPower Europe, the event saw our respective CEOs, Diego Pavia and Walburga Hemetsberger lay down the case for a European Solar Initiative. This included discussions around job creation, sustainability and the economic gains from boosting European solar manufacturing.

Supporting this approach, Kadri Simson set the scene by reinforcing the new, higher target set by the European Commission for reducing carbon emissions, which has now increased to 55% by 2030.

“The success of reaching these ambitions relies mainly on renewable energy. So it’s clear that PV is a key technological sector at the core of these ambitions,” Commissioner Simson went on to say.

This was followed by a reference to the strategies already being adopted to support these goals, which are around green hydrogen, energy system integration and offshore renewable energy – all of which are initiatives either being led or supported by EIT InnoEnergy.

The meeting cemented the fact that Europe’s climate and energy goals for 2030 and 2050 will rely heavily on renewables, with Solar PV playing a critical role. As tweeted by Kadri Simson after the meeting concluded: "Currently, solar PV is at 137 GW. We want this figure to double to 320 GW by 2030. And then triple again by 2050!"

EIT InnoEnergy will continue to play a leading role in this initiative, as it is currently doing with the European Battery Alliance and the European Green Hydrogen Acceleration Centre. Stay tuned for further updates and read the Commissioner's full speech here.