When I joined Solar Heat Europe in March 2023, we were reporting a 12% growth in sales in 2022, clearly explained by the last energy crisis spurred by the attack to Ukraine, which unfortunately is still a reality for our neighbours. However, at least for our sector, this increase did not last. As Europe and the world, now face yet again a new period of energy uncertainty and geopolitical instability, it is worth looking back at the last crisis and what worked, what failed and, above all, what Europe cannot afford to repeat. The lesson is clear: Europe must invest – once and for all – for the long term and strengthen its energy independence through the use of resilient and homegrown technologies. And this is how, solar thermal, other renewables, flexibility and storage must play their role. We are all ready to scale.
We, together with our Board, have been very active promoting this message, and we have been meeting with high-level officials over the past few weeks. We welcomed the recently launched AccelerateEU initiative, a communication to address the energy crisis, where the European Commission acknowledges the urgent need to speed up the deployment of renewable and homegrown technologies. Commissioner Jorgensen and the full proposal clearly acknowledges the role that solar thermal can play, notably for large scale district heating and industry. This is an extremely positive political signal for our technology and its role for the transition towards a more secure and competitive energy system. We have liaised with our members on their capacity to scale production. Our network is ready to meet a growing demand, provided the policy and market signals are there.
Looking at the next steps, Solar Heat Europe has been advocating for months, like many other actors in the heat sector including civil society, for a strong visibility of the Heating & Cooling agenda and the role that decentralised technologies like solar thermal can play. We understand that the related communication, now due on 10 June, will consider a combined communication together with the Electrification Action Plan, but continue to stress that this must not come at the expense of the visibility originally envisaged for the Heating and Cooling Strategy. The decarbonisation of heating and cooling, particularly through direct renewable heat solutions, must remain clearly reflected in both the content and the title of the final initiative.
In parallel of all the work that our team is doing in this crisis context, one other major priority remains essential for our sector: ensuring that solar thermal grows, and that this demand is answered by favouring our EU-based manufacturers. We are active on the CBAM Extension and are actively calling for consistency in the next key political decisions with what is the Net Zero Industry Act. Consistency with the recognition that Solar Thermal IS an EU-based technology and must continue to remain one. Consistency by defending the need for solar thermal to be put back into the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), in line with the original plans.
Consistency by ensuring that EU public procurement preferences and subsidies directly benefit EU companies. This is precisely where solar thermal stands out, with its strong European manufacturing base, established supply chains, local expertise and capacity for innovation. The IAA, designed to reinforce Europe’s competitiveness and industrial leadership in clean technologies, cannot overlook a technology that is already made in Europe.
For this reason, Solar Heat Europe has been successful in rallying more than 90 European companies and organisations from across the solar thermal sector in a common call to European and national policymakers, urging them to include solar thermal in key provisions of the IAA. At a time when Europe seeks to reduce strategic dependencies, strengthen industrial competitiveness and create quality local jobs, solar thermal is ready to scale. Let’s accelerate the use of solar heat. There is already a European solar success story, and it is solar thermal.
So, in short, this crisis must be the good one to really phase out our dependency from fossil fuels and embrace renewables. And the solar thermal sector needs double-digit growth again. To the benefit of its manufacturers firmly rooted in Europe.
Valérie Séjourné, Managing Director of Solar Heat Europe
May 2026