On Wednesday, 5 March 2025, the quarterly Cleantech for Baltics Coalition Meeting took place to discuss the European Commission’s recently published Clean Industrial Deal (CID). Attended by Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian public sector representatives, cleantech innovators, and support organizations, the meeting included an overview and first thoughts of the CID, as well as a presentation of upcoming cleantech funding opportunities from Horizon Europe.
Overview of the CID was given by Riin Saluveer, European Commission Representation in Estonia, to better understand how the strategic document approaches cleantech specifically. Saluveer laid out the 6 underlying challenges that the CID addresses, including affordable energy, lead markets and demand, financing, circularity and access to materials, global markets and international partnerships, and skilled labor.
To overcome these challenges, several measures have been proposed by the Commission, such as the Affordable Energy Action Plan, Industrial Decarbonisation Act, and scaling up the EU Innovation Fund, to name a few. Altogether, the CID aims to support industry, lower energy costs, and accelerate decarbonisation.
Following the overview, ministry representatives provided initial feedback on the CID, helping us pinpoint most important topics for the Baltic states. Insights were shared by Marie Allikmaa, Director of the Entrepreneurship Department at Estonia’s Ministry of Economic Affairs; Ilona Malceva, Head of the Industry Policy Division at Lithuania’s Ministry of Economy and Innovation; and Artūrs Zandersons, Adviser to the Minister for Economic Affairs in Latvia.
More in-depth discussions on local levels around the Clean Industrial Deal will continue. However, speakers could already agree that reducing bureaucratic hurdles and introducing EU content requirements in procurement are crucial steps. Without these measures, Europe risks continued dependence on external markets and competitiveness.
