SET plan progress report 2023 : coordinated energy research and innovation for a competitive Europe

Since its inception in 2019, the European Green Deal has set out the route for a sustainable, secure and competitive energy system for the EU, achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Four years later, the legislative framework continues to develop. Earlier this year, the European Commission introduced the Green Deal Industrial Plan, which includes the Net-Zero Industry Act and the Critical Raw Materials Act. These legislative proposals are key to achieving the European Union's clean energy goals through the establishment and reinforcement of resilient clean energy supply chains. Clean energy research and innovation are pivotal for the energy transition. The Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan) plays a key role in coordinating European and national R&I agendas for low-carbon energy solutions. As the policy landscape is changing fast, so too must the SET Plan. Following an extensive consultation process, the Commission published a communication on 20 October outlining the SET Plan's revision. The communication proposes a refinement of the SET Plan's strategic objectives to align them with the new policy framework. It also proposes to elevate the SET Plan's political status, linking it structurally to the European Research Area (ERA), setting ambitious targets, expanding the technology scope, strengthening its reporting (in which this report plays a part) and establishing task forces for crosscutting issues.