This report by the Clean Energy Technology Observatory (CETO) provides a strategic analysis of the EU clean energy technology sector, updated with data up to and including 2024. In 2024, renewables reached 25.2% of the EU’s gross final energy consumption, and 47.5% of its gross electricity consumption. The rate of electrification has, however, remained slow, hovering around 23% over the last decade, with the decarbonisation of transport and heating still at an early stage. The EU manufacturing production value for clean energy technologies decreased by 5% year on year, reaching approximately EUR 74 billion in 2024. The overall trade deficit (2024) decreased by 35% to EUR 24 billion, driven by a drop in imports for batteries and solar PV. While the production value of wind energy equipment grew by 30% and maintained a trade surplus, production values for solar PV and heat pumps declined by over a third. EU public investment in energy research and innovation exceeded EUR 10.5 billion in 2023. However, venture capital investment in the EU dropped to 56% of its 2023 value in 2024, amid a broader 14% global decline. The EU’s share of global VC investment therefore reduced by 10 percentage points to 19%. Employment in the renewable energy sector reached 1.8 million in 2023 but did not increase further in 2024 due to factors such as automation and supply chain effects. Regarding the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) benchmarks, the EU is well-positioned in wind, heat pumps and alkaline electrolysers. While the EU faces critical manufacturing shortfalls in batteries and upstream solar PV, it demonstrates strong success in downstream components such as PV inverters, where current capacity already covers 187% of projected 2030 deployment needs. A new JRC sustainability assessment framework shows that technologies manufactured in the EU often have a lower carbon footprint than imported alternatives, but there are still significant supply chain risks related to critical raw materials.

GEORGAKAKI Aliki;  PIELA Krzysztof;  DELGADO CALLICÓ Laia;  FINCK Rafael;  GRABOWSKA Marcelina;  INCE Ela;  MILETIC Marija;  MOUNTRAKI Aikaterini;  NOHL Lucy;  TAYLOR Nigel;  TERÇA Gonçalo; 

BLACK Catriona; 

2026-07-16

Publications Office of the European Union

JRC146873

978-92-68-41289-3 (online),   

1831-9424 (online),   

EUR 40778,    OP KJ-01-26-291-EN-N (online),   

https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC146873,   

10.2760/1513011 (online),