On Thursday, 26 June, I attended the first edition of Clean Tech Italy's General Assembly in Rome. Cleantech for Italy is part of a European initiative launched with the support of Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy. It brings together leading companies, investors and research institutes in the sector. The aim is to create a stable platform for dialogue between innovators, industrialists, investors and public decision-makers to guide Italian industrial policy. The discussion zeroed in on the potential for the industrialisation of sustainable technologies, a domain in which Italy is set to solidify and expand its current excellence in specific sectors. This move is poised to jolt industrial production, which has been struggling for months, out of its slump.
As with many other initiatives that highlight the importance of the ecological transition for competitiveness and the "country system" in general, the most difficult point is establishing a dialogue with politicians, both Italian and, more recently, European.
Politics and institutions are clearly more interested in protecting traditional industrial sectors than investing in the ecological transition.
It is clear that these sectors have an interest in maintaining the status quo and are succeeding in competing directly for private and public funding, both national and European. This should be redirected to support innovation and sustainability. They are also contributing to creating uncertainty and delays in the effective implementation of the existing regulatory framework defined by the Green Deal. Information plays a crucial role here. The media is often misinformed or influenced by specific interests, and this has contributed to a distorted narrative being spread, with fears and resistance being amplified.
This is the reality, whether we like it or not. The effects are clear to see.
Cleantech for Italy's latest report finds that investment in CleanTech companies in 2024 is still on an upward trend, but it fell by 32% compared to 2023 (230.08 million compared to 339 million). The energy and electricity generation sector saw a significant decline in investment from €148 million in 2023 to €22.6 million in 2024. It is clear that the political and geopolitical context is having a negative impact; the anti-green wave led by conservative and right-wing parties and governments, some of them quite extreme, is also affecting the European Commission in an unexpected way that is inconsistent with the commitments made by President Von der Leyen at the beginning of her term. This risks undermining objectives that were clearly defined and, until recently, endorsed by the European People's Party.
The current difficult discussion in Brussels on the 2040 emissions reduction target is a prime example. The Commission has chosen to postpone this discussion for several months. It is now reaching a crucial moment: the 90% reduction target, which seemed to be a foregone conclusion just a few months ago, is now being contested and unwelcome flexibilities are to be allowed. This is not a technical detail: the EU's credibility in international negotiations depends on this commitment. At COP30 in Belém, the EU must present its contribution to the global fight against climate-changing emissions by 2035, a commitment closely linked to the 2040 targets.
The United States is withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and dismantling the clean tech industry incentive plan launched by Biden. This is bad news; but the European Union must use this opportunity to maintain and strengthen its leading role in the climate fight. It must attract green investors, who are already starting to leave the US, and stimulate innovation and development.
We must regain consensus, change the balance of power and make the transition much more advantageous and desirable than the prevailing narrative would have us believe. Businesses must act now to counter the anti-Green Deal wave sweeping the nation. They must act in coordinated and cohesive manner in the media and within national and European institutions.
We must continue to mitigate emissions and adapt to the increasingly tangible consequences of climate change. Quite the contrary. It is clear that the scorching temperatures in many parts of the old continent, the drought alert and its impact on GDP, as described even by the ECB, the devastating effects of wars and armies on emissions, the blows suffered by our industries and, at the same time, the solutions that are advancing at a rapid pace, from renewables to water management, from energy efficiency technologies to the circular economy, all point very clearly in the direction we need to take. As Letta and Draghi wrote in their reports, companies must be able to tackle the green and digital transitions and "navigate" the current stormy world, with adequate rules and financial support to sustain them, if European competitiveness is to be strengthened.
The Green Tech General Assembly is a perfect example of this logic of dialogue and mobilisation. While there is little time to decide on concrete actions, it has brought to light some interesting points.
Firstly, we must continue to organise spaces for dialogue and joint action between businesses, universities, financial institutions and institutions that often share the same priorities but collaborate little. This is essential in a context where access to funding and other available support is made difficult by the fragmentation and overlap of existing instruments at various levels.
Two-thirds of the green technologies we need already exist, but they are often on too small a scale and face insufficient or intermittent demand. As Michele Torsello stated during the States General, we must therefore encourage both the innovation needed to bridge the gap that still exists and to improve solutions that are already working. The process of innovation, even of mature technologies, is key to disrupting the geopolitical balance in the value chain. By increasing their efficiency and reducing their dependence on critical minerals, we can move China out of its dominant position. Torsello stated that financial resources alone are not enough; a long-term industrial policy vision is needed to provide stability and consistency to the regulatory framework, as well as an innovation ecosystem made up of research centres, start-ups, and public and private investors, all moving in the same direction.
Thirdly, the clean tech sector must also make a qualitative leap in its ability to represent itself and make its voice heard. The dialogue with institutions must become more cohesive. At present, it is dominated by sectors that are much more visible and organised, such as nuclear, energy-intensive, traditional chemicals and gas. CleanTech and the green economy in general must offer fundamental solutions for the future, yet representatives of these sectors remain too invisible and divided.
Clean-tech and green economy operators are simply not present enough in Brussels or Italy when compared to those who promote the interests of nuclear, gas, chemicals or energy-intensive industries. This is something that officials and policymakers at all levels are always saying. It is clear that the impact of these lobbies and pressure groups is enormous. They are legitimate, well organised, well funded and able to convince policy makers who show little sensitivity or conviction about the urgency of climate action. We must be able to counter them more effectively.
We will identify concrete priorities to develop an action plan and make collaboration between CleanTech companies and their associations in Italy and Europe more effective.
We must oppose the reopening and regressive revision of the Fit for 55 package. This means protecting targets on renewables, energy efficiency and other standards, starting with the automotive sector. CleanTech companies must organise themselves to make the most of the opportunities offered by the instruments currently being defined at European level. These include the Decarbonisation Bank, the Innovation Fund, and the measures and recommendations contained in the Clean Industrial Deal and the new State Aid Scheme. We must also engage more directly in the consultation channels with businesses that the Commission is opening up. The fossil fuel, automotive, energy-intensive and nuclear sectors are very present there, so we need to ensure a more balanced and influential representation of the CleanTech sector's concerns.
It is clear that greater coordination and cohesion between operators is essential. Simplified access to existing financial and regulatory instruments is vital, as is coherent political action. What is needed is stronger and more structured representation by businesses in the sector.
In this time of instability and multiple crises, we must transform great potential into tangible, visible and measurable choices that will make a real difference at the decision-making tables. The transition is set to be a competitive opportunity for Italy and Europe. We must make it count. We must not waste any more time.
