European Commission to invest €2.9 billion in net-zero projects
The European Commission (EC) has approved €2.9 billion ($3.3 billion) in funding to support 61 net-zero technology projects.
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The financing will come from EC’s ‘Innovation Fund’, using revenues from the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The selected projects span 18 countries and cover a range of industrial sectors, including maritime, the EC said.
“The focus is on energy-intensive industries, renewable energy and energy storage, net-zero mobility and buildings, cleantech manufacturing and industrial carbon management,” it added.
Among the selected projects is Conet2 Sea, a Spain-based initiative to transport captured CO2 across the Mediterranean. It aims to demonstrate a large-scale liquefied CO2 (LCO2) shipping service from cement plants to permanent geological storage sites in Spain.
“The project will develop and operate a medium-pressure LCO2 vessel, designed to maintain CO2 in liquid form,” according to the commissions.
Another selected project, eSeaRiverBarg, aims at developing a zero-emission sea-river shipping service for containers between the Netherlands and the UK by building and operating two ships with “innovative propulsion systems.”
The project will utilize a combination of technologies, including wind-assisted propulsion, electric engines, and swappable lithium-ion batteries, to achieve zero emissions, the commission added.
The EC has invited the selected projects to begin grant agreement talks with the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA).
Over the coming months, the EC and project partners will finalise the financial, technical and legal terms of the contracts. Final approval is anticipated in the first half of 2026.
“The 61 projects have the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, cutting some 221 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent over their first decade of operation,” the EC said.
By Aparupa Mazumder
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