European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen outlined on Wednesday the main principles of the Green Deal Industrial Plan, the European Union's response to the United States Inflation Reduction Act. In a speech to the European Parliament, she said that "the competitiveness of the whole of our economy is at stake" as the bloc works on the transformation to clean energy.
Von der Leyen said the plan will require regulations allowing the EU to "scale up fast and to create conducive conditions for the clean-tech industry." She announced the EU will put forward a new Net-Zero Industry Act, a counterpart to the US CHIPS Act. The union will also propose to temporarily speed up and simplify state aid rules while preserving a level playing field for businesses. In addition, the proposed plan will require training workers for clean industries, including 1 million workers in the solar industry by 2030 alone. Finally, the EU will boost supply chains through trade agreements with Chile, Mexico, New Zealand and Australia.
