Brussels, 7 February 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Solar cells, wind turbines and heat pumps: climate-friendly tech in the European Union is to get a big boost after negotiators from the European Parliament and member states agreed on the "Net-Zero Industry Act" on Tuesday.

The plan aims to simplify authorization procedures, for example, so that more investment can flow into green industry projects.

The bloc largely relies on imports of clean technologies in order to achieve its climate targets. The act aims to return solar and wind power production to the EU.

This will also help the 27-member EU achieve its goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050.

EU states and parliament still have to approve the law, but this is considered a formality.

The plan is "a strong signal that we are taking the regulatory burden on our industry seriously and want industrial renewal in Europe," said German lawmaker Christian Ehler, spokesman for industrial and energy policy for the parliament's centre-right European People's Party group.

He said it could make Europe more attractive as an investment location for industry and provide some counterweight to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which provides incentives for domestic manufacturing of clean energy technologies.

Brussels has been fretting for more than a year that businesses will be lured to the United States by the IRA, which provides major subsidies and tax credits.

Photo: MIA archive