2026 CleanTech Conference – Challenges and Opportunities for Industrial Decarbonisation
On 19 May, the 2026 CleanTech Conference in Brussels, organised by CINEA and DG CLIMA, brought together policymakers, innovators, investors, and industry leaders to discuss Europe’s path towards industrial decarbonisation, competitiveness, energy resilience and experiences with Innovation Fund (IF). A team from Hezelburcht attended the conference and gathered the main insights and recommendations shared throughout the event:
A second Innovation Fund Heat Auction confirmed
During the conference, IF was presented as one of the EU’s main instruments to drive industrial decarbonisation and support breakthrough technologies. This ambition is already translating into concrete support mechanisms. During the conference, a second Heat Auction round, with a € 1 billion budget, was confirmed for later this year. Following the success of the first call, which selected 65 projects to support industrial electrification across Europe.
Scaling Cleantech in Europe – Key Challenges and Recommendations
Industry leaders agreed that technologies are ready and capital is available, but Europe must now move faster from discussion to delivery. The discussions highlighted the following priorities:
- Faster and standardised European regulation to simplify permitting procedures and accelerate project deployment.
- Grid access and permitting delays remain a major bottleneck, with some projects facing connection timelines of up to 5–10 years.
- Stronger industrial resilience and reduced dependence on external suppliers for cleantech technologies, components, and critical raw materials.
- More integrated and circular European value chains, including the reuse of materials and components to strengthen competitiveness and reduce geopolitical exposure.
- Greater investment certainty through stable regulation, secure supply chains, and long-term offtake agreements.
- Recognition that standalone technologies are often not enough, resilient ecosystems and industrial partnerships are becoming essential.
- Skills, reskilling, and intersectoral mobility were identified as critical to support Europe’s cleantech transition and long-term competitiveness.
Innovation Fund – Insights and Lessons from Awarded Projects
Investors and innovators with successful IF-funded projects shared their experience and provided the following valuable recommendations:
- Persistence is key: several awarded projects succeeded only after multiple submissions.
- The IF application process itself was considered valuable preparation, as many evaluation questions reflect future implementation and commercialisation challenges.
- Participation in IF also helps projects better understand the European cleantech and industrial ecosystem.
- Without IF support, some projects stated they would not have been able to develop or scale their technologies.
Main takeaways for future IF applicants:
For future applicants, the discussions highlighted that successful projects are no longer based on innovation alone. Strong industrial partnerships, resilient supply chains, and clear market demand are becoming essential from the early stages of project development.
Curious about what Hezelburcht could mean for your project in the next Innovation Fund round? Please do not hesitate to contact us. Get in touch via info@hezelburcht.com, call 088 495 20 00 or complete the contact form to schedule an introduction:
