Study on the competitiveness of the EU renewable energy industry : executive summary of the final report to DG Enterprise & Industry, 31 July 2014

This is the Executive Summary of the final report from a study conducted by ICF International, supported by CE Delft, on behalf of the European Commission Directorate-General Enterprise and Industry (DG ENTR). It provides a consolidated summary of the key conclusions from an analysis of competitiveness of the European renewable energy industry (REI), including a detailed analysis of the challenges and opportunities for companies operating in the offshore wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) sectors. It also provides a set of suggested policy recommendations for DG ENTR to consider. The key objectives of the study were to: • Provide an assessment of the competitiveness aspects related to EU REI sectors and associated sub-sectors, namely biomass energy, hydropower, geothermal energy, ocean energy, solar energy and wind energy; • Assess the impact of EU legislation across these six sectors; • Assess and define the future potential for renewable energy products and services for different companies sizes in the EU and provide an in-depth strategic outlook about future developments; and, • Identify ways and means for increasing the competitiveness of the sector. Approach to the study The work was carried out between November 2013 and July 2014 and is based on a number of information channels. The main research approach was a detailed literature review. This included analysis of various published databases to examine R&D investment, turnover, employment, production and trade data for EU REI sectors. This research was supported by consultations with European REI trade associations who provided invaluable insights on current market dynamics, challenges and policy needs. A subsequent piece of research was designed to elicit feedback on market opportunities, operational and market challenges as well as specific policy needs from 35 companies operating in the offshore wind and solar PV sectors. The rationale for this choice of sectors was based on the very different market outlooks for these areas: offshore wind offers enormous growth prospects to 2020 and beyond; conversely, solar PV (which is currently the second most installed renewable energy technology in the EU on an annual basis, after ten years of market expansion and cost reduction), must now exist in an environment where incentive structures offer reduced benefits to project developers. In each sector both large firms and SMEs were selected to represent different points in the value chain.