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European Solar Manufacturing Council

ESMC

ESMC promotes solar manufacturing in Europe and advocates for policies supporting industrial production and research across the solar value chain.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Nicolás González Casares (Member of the European Parliament)

15 Jan 2026 · Industrial Accelerator Act

Meeting with Yannis Maniatis (Member of the European Parliament) and REScoop.eu vzw

14 Jan 2026 · Introductory Meeting

Meeting with Barbara Bonte (Member of the European Parliament)

14 Jan 2026 · Solar power

Meeting with Virgil-Daniel Popescu (Member of the European Parliament)

17 Dec 2025 · Europe-made solar PV panels and inverters

Meeting with Isabella Tovaglieri (Member of the European Parliament)

9 Dec 2025 · Solar policies and IAA

European Solar Council Urges Reform to Support Local Manufacturing

2 Dec 2025
Topic — Evaluation of whether EU non-preferential rules of origin need modernization.
Message — The group calls for new trade codes for all solar components and manufacturing equipment. They propose a 'Made in Europe' standard requiring a specific percentage of local content. They also want module assembly, rather than cell production, to determine origin.123
Why — These changes would protect European producers from low-cost imports and boost local production.45
Impact — Chinese firms would lose the ability to hide product origin by moving assembly steps abroad.6
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Solar Manufacturers Urge EU to Prioritise Chinese Subsidy Investigations

18 Nov 2025
Topic — A review of how the Commission addresses foreign subsidies distorting the internal market.
Message — The organization calls for more frequent and rigorous application of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation within the solar value chain. They specifically recommend expanding probes into Chinese manufacturers and using proactive powers to investigate opaque subsidy schemes.123
Why — Stronger enforcement would restore fair competition and protect the survival of European manufacturers.45
Impact — Subsidised Chinese firms face increased scrutiny and potential exclusion from the European market.67
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ESMC urges EU to harmonize solar panel recycling rules

5 Nov 2025
Topic — The Circular Economy Act aims to improve sustainability and facilitate circular product movement.
Message — The group requests a uniform EU regulation for recycling solar modules instead of fragmented national rules. They also propose banning toxic antimony in glass and stopping the export of solar waste.123
Why — Redirecting importer fees would directly fund and protect European solar manufacturing projects.4
Impact — Importers and foreign waste processors would face new fees and supply restrictions.5
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European solar manufacturers demand urgent EU operational funding

5 Nov 2025
Topic — The consultation addresses EU funding for competitiveness within the next long-term budget.
Message — The Council calls for legally binding support for operational costs to survive foreign competition. They demand immediate funding through existing schemes before 2028 and a dedicated solar manufacturing budget.123
Why — This would shield European solar producers from bankruptcy caused by subsidized foreign competition.45
Impact — International competitors would lose access to EU funds under proposed local sourcing rules.6
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Solar manufacturers demand stricter security rules for PV systems

4 Nov 2025
Topic — New rules for delaying the sharing of cybersecurity incident and vulnerability notifications.
Message — Solar PV should be recognized as high-risk critical infrastructure under European cybersecurity rules. The organization requests mandatory incident reporting and security assessments for solar power components.12
Why — Tighter security rules would help European manufacturers compete against low-cost products from China.3
Impact — Chinese manufacturers would face significant hurdles due to stricter oversight of their digital products.4
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Meeting with Michael Bloss (Member of the European Parliament) and E-MOBILITY EUROPE and

14 Oct 2025 · Clean Industrial Deal Implementation

Solar manufacturers demand sustainability criteria for EU procurement

13 Oct 2025
Topic — Consultation on minimum environmental sustainability requirements for public procurement of clean technologies.
Message — The council urges the Commission to revise the draft regulation to include solar PV sustainability requirements. They advocate for prioritising products with low carbon footprints and responsible supply chain practices.12
Why — These rules would protect domestic producers and encourage new investment by penalising high-emission imports.34
Impact — Foreign exporters of low-quality solar modules lose access to the European public procurement market.56
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European Solar Manufacturing Council demands ban on Chinese inverters

13 Oct 2025
Topic — The Commission is revising the EU energy security framework to address geopolitical risks and decarbonisation.
Message — The council demands excluding Chinese solar products from all European renewable energy support schemes. They also propose a whitelist to block high-risk vendors from accessing the power grid.12
Why — Excluding foreign rivals would protect domestic manufacturers from price competition and increase market share.3
Impact — Consumers and installers could face supply shortages and higher costs if Chinese equipment is prohibited.4
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European Solar Manufacturing Council urges CBAM extension for solar panels

25 Aug 2025
Topic — The consultation considers extending the carbon border adjustment mechanism to include downstream industrial products.
Message — The council urges the European Commission to extend carbon border taxes to solar panels, mounting structures, and trackers. They also propose specific customs codes to better monitor these products and facilitate their inclusion.12
Why — This would eliminate cost disadvantages for European producers and encourage local manufacturing investment.34
Impact — Chinese exporters would lose their current cost advantage when selling carbon-intensive products to Europe.5
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Meeting with Maroš Šefčovič (Commissioner) and

11 Jul 2025 · Implementation dialogue on customs legislation - Rules of origin

European solar manufacturers urge more flexible EU funding rules

24 Jun 2025
Topic — This consultation evaluates the operations of the European Union's Innovation Fund.
Message — The group demands simpler application processes and more frequent funding calls. They also call for financial support covering operational costs like workforce and machinery leasing. Finally, they want a dedicated funding mechanism specifically for solar technology.123
Why — Changes would lower compliance costs and help manufacturers compete with global rivals.4
Impact — Incumbent corporate giants may lose their preferred status over agile independent developers.5
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European solar manufacturers urge stricter cybersecurity rules for inverters

19 Jun 2025
Topic — Revision of the EU Cybersecurity Act to improve digital resilience and certification frameworks.
Message — The council requests that the EU recognize solar inverters as critical infrastructure subject to mandatory third-party audits. They want the law to address risks from foreign jurisdictions that control software vulnerabilities.123
Why — This policy would protect European manufacturers by excluding foreign competitors with weak security standards.4
Impact — Foreign suppliers subject to state-mandated vulnerability reporting would face significant market barriers.5
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Meeting with Jacek Truszczyński (Acting Head of Unit Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs)

17 Jun 2025 · Meeting to present ESMC ideas and proposals on support to the EU solar sector directly to the European Commission

Meeting with Raphaël Glucksmann (Member of the European Parliament)

13 May 2025 · Photovoltaic industry

Meeting with Paula Rey Garcia (Head of Unit Energy) and SolarEdge Technologies Inc and Fronius International GmbH

12 May 2025 · Assessment of the Solar PV Supply Chain and Inverters

Response to Implementing Act for guidelines on strategic projects

20 Feb 2025

ESMC feedback on: European Commission proposal, implementing decision: guidelines for the implementation of certain selection criteria for net-zero strategic projects (NZIA Article 13) General remarks We welcome the guidelines, which aim to streamline Member States selection processes for granting net-zero strategic status to projects of significant importance in rebuilding a European net-zero manufacturing ecosystem. For the solar PV manufacturing industry, it is urgently necessary to establish streamlined and efficient processes for fast-tracking permits and ensuring access to finance. Although only one criterion is required, European solar PV manufacturing projects would meet or exceed almost all criteria outlined in the proposal. However, a major shortcoming of the proposal is the absence of new financial support measures. Compared to other major economies such as the United States, China, and India the EU lags significantly behind in actively supporting net-zero projects, a concern also highlighted in the Draghi report. For this reason, we support the proposal but emphasize that new financial support mechanisms for net-zero strategic projects, both as OPEX and CAPEX, must be introduced at both the EU level and within Member States. ESMC proposes: Introduce new financial support mechanisms for net-zero strategic projects, covering both OPEX and CAPEX, at both the EU level and within Member States, ensuring alignment with the above-mentioned proposal. Please, find also as attached. Christoph Podewils, Secretary General, ESMC Jens Holm, Policy Director, ESMC
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Response to Implementing Act on non-price criteria in renewable energy auctions

20 Feb 2025

Dear Sirs, ESMC feedback on: European Commission proposal, implementing regulation: Specifying the pre-qualification and award criteria for auctions for the deployment of energy from renewable sources (NZIA article 26) General remarks The NZIA implementing act has the potential to be a vital tool in supporting both existing and new European solar PV manufacturing capacity by increasing the demand for European-made clean products. The EU target of 30 GW of solar PV manufacturing capacity across the full value chain to 2030 is a solid step towards revitalizing the European solar PV ecosystem, as well as achieving the manufacturing benchmark of at least 40 % net-zero technology capacity of the annual deployment need. Regarding the latter, we emphasize that the 40% target applies not only to net-zero technologies as a whole but also to their respective components, as stated in the explanatory memorandum to NZIA: The overall headline benchmark takes into account the need for scaling up manufacturing capacity not only for end-products but also for specific components. For some of these, such as (wafers, ingots or solar cells in the case of solar PV or anodes and cathodes for batteries, reaching the 40% headline benchmark represents a realistic but highly ambitious objective). (COM (2023)161, 1.1 Chapter 1 Subject matter, scope and definitions). However, reaching this target will require coordinated political and financial action at all levels the EU, Member States and industry stakeholders, including off-takers. This act specifies the criteria for renewable energy auctions with the purpose of strengthening European manufacturing capacity. ESMC highly welcomes this objective and acknowledges the EU Commission´s intent to encourage the Members States to adopt stringent criteria, which could predominantly be met by EEA-based companies, thereby serving as a proxy for Made in EEA. However, ESMC is concerned that the proposed criteria may not function effectively in practice and could contain loopholes. We will elaborate on these risks in the following sections. Additionally, several articles are detailed and complex in their wording, potentially making it difficult for Member States authorities to interpret and apply them properly. This could hinder the timely roll-out at the national level, even though swift adoption of these regulations will be essential for the success of the Net Zero Industry Act. In many Member States, the level of preparedness currently appears inadequate to meet these requirements. We therefore recommend clarifying the text wherever possible or using footnotes or recitals to improve its usability for Member State authorities. With our proposed amendments such as the inclusion of a Made in Europe clause, a robust carbon footprint assessment methodology, and stronger sustainability requirements covering the entire manufacturing process these auction criteria could become a powerful tool to advance European net-zero manufacturing. We also see our proposals as aligned with the upcoming Clean Industrial Deal, which is expected to require both local content and sustainability criteria in public procurement. For our full feedback, we refer to the attached document. Christoph Podewils, Secretary General, ESMC Jens Holm, Policy Director, ESMC
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Response to List of net-zero technology final products and their main specific components

20 Feb 2025

Dear Sirs, We are submitting comments on the two draft regulations mentioned above. For solar, we suggest the two regulations to be aligned so that their respective lists are identical. Regarding strategic projects, this alignment would help create demand for the primary used components originating from those projects. Without such a demand, the success of the strategic projects would be less likely. In practice, we recommend replacing the list of main specific components with the list of list of primary used components. These are a crucial part of increasing the resilience of Europe's energy supply. For our full feedback, we refer to the attached document. Christoph Podewils, Secretary General, ESMC Jens Holm, Policy Director, ESMC
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Response to Delegated act on primarily used components under the Net-Zero Industry Act

20 Feb 2025

Dear Sirs, We are submitting comments on the two draft regulations mentioned above. For solar, we suggest the two regulations to be aligned so that their respective lists are identical. Regarding strategic projects, this alignment would help create demand for the primary used components originating from those projects. Without such a demand, the success of the strategic projects would be less likely. In practice, we recommend replacing the list of main specific components with the list of list of primary used components. These are a crucial part of increasing the resilience of Europe's energy supply. For our full feedback, we refer to the attached document. Christoph Podewils, Secretary General, ESMC Jens Holm, Policy Director, ESMC
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Meeting with Anne-Maud Orlinski (Cabinet of Commissioner Dan Jørgensen), Kamil Talbi (Cabinet of Commissioner Dan Jørgensen)

13 Feb 2025 · Exchange of views on the competitiveness of the solar industry in the European Union

Meeting with Miguel Jose Garcia Jones (Cabinet of Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra)

21 Jan 2025 · Discussion on the role of solar manufacturing for Europe’s competitiveness and decarbonisation targets.

Solar Council Urges EU Measures to Combat Chinese Import Dependency

26 Nov 2024
Topic — This fitness check evaluates the effectiveness of the EU’s energy security architecture.
Message — The council calls for concrete energy security measures and off-take commitments for solar manufacturers. They advocate for EU compensation of operational expenditures to level the playing field against China.123
Why — This would protect local industry and create more competitive market conditions for manufacturers.4
Impact — Chinese manufacturers lose their market dominance if the EU implements these protective measures.5
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Meeting with Raphaël Glucksmann (Member of the European Parliament)

18 Oct 2024 · PV industry

Meeting with Petras Auštrevičius (Member of the European Parliament)

16 Oct 2024 · Ukraine, EU solar PV module manufacturers

Meeting with Barbara Glowacka (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson), Stefano Grassi (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson)

9 Sept 2024 · Support to the renewable energy sector Ukraine

Meeting with Kerstin Jorna (Director-General Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs)

24 Apr 2024 · Discussion on emergency measures to safeguard EU PV module producers

Meeting with Barbara Glowacka (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson), Stefano Grassi (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson)

21 Mar 2024 · Solar sector manufacturing

Response to Recommendation to promote the development of innovative forms of solar energy deployment

19 Mar 2024

The European Solar Manufacturing Council agree that agri-PV, floating PV, transport infrastructure PV, building-integrated PV and vehicle-integrated PV are technologies that could support European climate neutrality and energy independence by making buildings sources of renewable energy. In addition to the mentioned applications, we would like to bring the attention to also hybrid photovoltaic and solar thermal systems, so called PVT solutions, that produce both electricity to heat from the same panel. In the reset of our feed-back, we will refer to all these technologies as integrated-PV for simplicity. Recently, we published a study (http://media.becquerelsweden.se/2023/11/Shining-light-on-European-BIPV.-A-survey-of-dependence-and-fragmentation-in-the-emerging-european-value-chain-for-building-integrated-photovoltaics.pdf) that provides an overview of the status and import dependency of the European building-integrated PV (BIPV) value chain. The analysis of the upstream value chain showed that the European BIPV industry is highly dependent on non-European countries for the supply of key components, especially the silicon-based cell technology, with 80% of interviewed companies sourcing these cells from China. Other main components are also sourced from manufacturers in China, such as junction boxes (67%) and encapsulants (63%). This dependency is further aggravated by a mismatch between producer requirements and domestic supply of main components. In the downstream value chain, BIPV producers are required to fulfill regulations for both PV products and buildings, which results in time-consuming and complicated processes. It was further identified that a lack of knowledge and specific expertise of BIPV exists among important actors, hindering its development and diffusion. We believe that the learning from that study can be extended to the other European integrated-PV sectors, and our view is that they currently exist in niches at the intersection of the conventional PV regime and the building, vehicle, and agriculture regimes respectively. The expertise of the conventional PV and the other three regimes needs to be combined when implementing integrated-PV. This fusion could yield a distinct integrated-PV expertise and more well-defined roles and responsibilities for involved actors. Due to the diverging perceptions of for example BIPV as either a PV system or a building material an industry-wide agreement on a definition of the separate integrated-PV technologies and EU-wide separate integrated-PV standards would likely facilitate easier implementation and certification processes. Integrated-PV market niches, supported by policy, would enable the accumulation of knowledge and practical experience required for future competitiveness of a domestic integrated-PV manufacturing industry. In general domestic PV manufacturing industry is vital to ensure the strategic autonomy of Europe in times of high uncertainty of raw material supply and global logistical challenges. The urgency of the situation has been demonstrated in multiple technological sectors in the past years. Various opportunities are emerging, which are instrumental for achieving the Green Deal objectives. However, the sustainable competitiveness of the European PV manufacturing could be ensured only by innovative PV manufacturing and its full commercial deployment. For facilitating a domestic PV manufacturing industry of integrated-PV solutions one suitable policy option from the EU would be to create an Important Project of Common European Interest, which would permit EU Member States to support transnational projects of strategic significance. IPCEI could be one of the key support instruments to bring necessary financing and addressing the considerable technological and financial risks for the European companies to achieve a breakthrough in integrated-PV production and other innovations in the different integrated-PV manufacturing value chains.
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Meeting with Héloïse Auplat (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager), Thomas Woolfson (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager)

12 Mar 2024 · Situation of the European solar sector

Meeting with Jörgen Warborn (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

23 Feb 2024 · Forced labour

Meeting with Barbara Glowacka (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson), Stefano Grassi (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson)

15 Feb 2024 · EU solar manufacturing

Meeting with Héloïse Auplat (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager), Thomas Woolfson (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager)

9 Feb 2024 · Situation of the European solar sector

Meeting with Caroline Boeshertz (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis), Sofja Ribkina (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis)

27 Sept 2023 · situation faced by the EU solar industry

Meeting with Thomas Woolfson (Cabinet of Commissioner Didier Reynders)

25 Sept 2023 · Difficulties faced by solar PV industry in Europe

Solar group urges 'positive discrimination' for European manufacturing

27 Jun 2023
Topic — The Net Zero Industry Act aims to boost domestic production of green technologies.
Message — The council requests raising price incentives from 10% to 30% to help domestic products compete with cheaper imports. They also propose priority grid access for projects that use 40% European-made materials.12
Why — This package would secure domestic market share and offset higher operating costs for manufacturers.34
Impact — Solar energy consumers would face higher costs because of the proposed price premiums.5
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Meeting with Maria-Manuel Leitão-Marques (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

9 May 2023 · Forced Labour

Meeting with Raphaël Glucksmann (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

9 May 2023 · APA - Forced labour

Meeting with Thomas Woolfson (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager)

27 Apr 2023 · EU policies and initiatives such as the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, REPowerEU and the Net Zero Industry Act

Meeting with Peter Van Kemseke (Cabinet of President Ursula von der Leyen)

25 Jan 2023 · PV manufacturing industry proposals

Meeting with Kurt Vandenberghe (Cabinet of President Ursula von der Leyen)

28 Nov 2022 · Launching of the EU Solar PV Industry Alliance

Response to Communication on revamping the SET Plan

2 Nov 2022

The European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) is an industry association representing the interests of the European PV manufacturing industry. ESMC represents key European industrial companies, organisations and research centres active in the PV manufacturing sector. Our aim is to promote and support the PV manufacturing industry and its value chains at the European level by creating a supportive political environment. ESMC welcomes the upcoming revision of the SET Plan to make it fit for the new political context. ESMC responds to this call for evidence in 5 key supporting messages proposing more concrete actions on the implementation of foreseen targets: 1) ESMC extensively supports the target of the renewed SET Plan to increase the performance and cost efficiency of smart clean energy technologies, as well as the efficiency and resilience of clean energy value chains, including those at industrial manufacturing level. All the necessary conditions for the long-term European PV manufacturing competitiveness must be delivered as fast as possible using all available measures including, but not limited to the measures adopted in this respect of the SET Plan. The current extensive import dependency of PV hardware in the EU may well hinder the rapid transition to renewables, as Europe risk facing supply chain shortages if domestic PV manufacturing capacities are not secured in a fast and sustainable manner. Accordingly, industrial PV manufacturing utilizing the SET Plan is a key to solve the forthcoming supply chain challenges for the successful deployment of the European PV targets. 2) ESMC also supports the envisaged target of SET Plan revision to accelerate the development and the deployment of smart clean energy technologies. ESMC proposes to use the SET Plan to grant the de facto status for PV manufacturing as the European strategic energy technology. The SET Plan should envisage concrete measures to support innovative PV technologies and at the same time ensuring the scaling of PV manufacturing in the EU. 3) ESMC supports the plans to develop an overall strategy to exploit synergies between R&I strategies and the innovation landscape at national, European and international levels, and specific synergies between the various instruments providing financial support for R&I at national and EU levels. This measure would be beneficial for developers to attract financing for R&I projects without delay and to integrate it into other PV manufacturing frameworks. 4) ESMC extensively supports the target to reduce EU technology dependence and increase its resilience including the availability of critical materials. It is of utmost importance to clarify a concrete and targeted action plan including the appropriate funding for the implementation of this target. 5) As the revision of the SET Plan will also take into account various EU policy incentives and policy frameworks, ESMC reiterates the importance that support for innovative and breakthrough PV manufacturing technologies is critical to maintain the long-term and sustainable competitive advantage of European PV manufacturing. ESMC already in 2021 initiated the Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) for solar PV manufacturing (PV-IPCEI) to ensure the long-term and sustainable development of innovative and breakthrough technologies in Europe. The respective measures are under implementation to start the notification of the concrete projects once the confirmation of several more Member States are granted. ESMC is looking forward to the timely and comprehensive revision of the SET Plan with the clear expectation that the European Commission will explore all routes necessary to appropriately address the existing bottlenecks of the European PV manufacturing value chain while equally respecting the measures for R&I and industrial manufacturing.
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Meeting with Barbara Glowacka (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson)

30 Sept 2022 · To discuss some inputs to the forthcoming EU Solar PV Industry Alliance.

Meeting with Eszter Batta (Cabinet of Commissioner Thierry Breton)

30 Sept 2022 · Preparation of the Solar Alliance

Meeting with Barbara Glowacka (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson), Stefano Grassi (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson)

29 Mar 2022 · Discussion on EMSC’s ongoing initiatives and Commission’s work on boosting the manufacturing and deployment of solar PVs in the EU

Meeting with Kerstin Jorna (Director-General Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs)

7 Dec 2021 · Discussion on IPCEIs

Response to Environmental impact of photovoltaic modules, inverters and systems - Energy Labelling

28 Oct 2021

The European Solar Manufacturing Council supports the introduction of sustainability policies for PV modules, inverters and systems, in particular the proposal for the mandatory policies Ecodesign and Energy labelling, coupled with the voluntary Green Public Procurement. We believe that these policies, if designed well, will promote sustainability and can contribute to the EU Green Deal and ‘Fit for 55’ proposals. The EU Recovery and Resilience Plans as well as the Just Transition Fund would be reinforced by these policies. Manufacturing in Europe is more sustainable than in most other parts of the world and sustainability criteria therefor potentially provide a competitive advantage for European manufacturers. This has been recognized by the Commission and the EU Industrial Strategy Update (5 May 2021) therefore refers to “ecodesign measures for solar panels, including possible requirements on carbon footprint”. The Impact Assessment needs to look at the effects of the policy options on the PV manufacturing industry in Europe, including jobs, value creation and trade balance. Furthermore, it should consider the strategic value of reducing the dependence on imports (largely from China) of PV components and modules, which is increasingly critical as solar energy becomes the most important source of electricity and the central element of the green transition. Sustainability in the broader sense includes social aspects, such as labour rights. Again, manufacturing in Europe potentially provides benefits in this respect as well, and the Impact Assessment should consider this too. The concerns about forced labour and human rights abuses for example against the Uighur minority in the Xinjiang province in China should not be ignored. An Environmental Impact Index , a rating scheme for a holistic evaluation of sustainability, including Corporate Social Responsibility criteria, should be considered. However, sustainability benefits and potential benefits for European manufacturers can only be realized if the policy is designed well, and the effects and impacts therefore depend on how it will be implemented. The policies need to be verifiable, as simple as possible, and have a strong element of verification/certification to avoid cheating and provide a level playing field. However, if the policies are too weak and leave loopholes, in the worst case, they could be counter-productive, giving the impression of promoting sustainability, while in fact they might not. We are especially concerned about the proposed Life Cycle Assessment methodology for carbon footprint. In particular allowing Energy Attribute Certificate (EAC) to count towards the carbon intensity of electricity, as is the case with the current PEFCR, would significantly weaken the policy; it would allow “dirty” producers to buy their way out, which implies a risk of “green washing”. This would potentially undermine the benefits in terms of sustainability and the competitive advantage for European manufacturers. The Impact Assessment might need to consider the differences depending on which methodology is being used. We advocate a carbon footprint methodology which is based on the functional unit Watt peak (Wp) for modules (rather than kWh which is more appropriate for systems), carbon intensity of the national electricity mixes and not allowing EAC. This is for example the case in the tender system in France which has been successfully proven over many years. Other such methodologies include the EPD PCR (the international EPD system is commonly used in the construction industry) and possibly the Global Electronics Council’s EPEAT scheme . Furthermore, the administrative burden of the policies should be considered so that it does not pose any significant disadvantage for SMEs. European manufacturers are often significantly smaller compared to their Chinese competitors who dominate the global market. We would be happy to engage in further detailed discussions.
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Meeting with Laure Chapuis (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson), Stefano Grassi (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson), Thor-Sten Vertmann (Cabinet of Commissioner Kadri Simson)

22 Jun 2021 · EU solar PV industry in recovery and green transition. Upcoming EU initiatives related to solar PV.

Meeting with Ditte Juul-Joergensen (Director-General Energy)

23 Apr 2021 · Presentation of ESMC’s recently published policy statement “Solar Manufacturing Renaissance in Europe – Appeal for Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) commitment”.