The Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) is a type of regulatory framework, specifically Regulation (EU) 2024/1735, established by the European Union (EU). It originated from the EU's Green Deal Industrial Plan and was proposed by the European Commission in March 2023. The Act came into force on 29 June 2024, primarily as a response to the need to scale up domestic manufacturing of clean technologies and reduce the EU's strategic dependency on imports, a problem highlighted by global competition like the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The Act's core mechanism is to set a binding objective for the EU to meet at least 40% of its annual deployment needs for strategic net-zero technologies domestically by 2030. To achieve this, it streamlines administrative procedures by designating certain projects as 'net-zero strategic projects', which receive priority status and faster permitting. It also introduces 'Net-Zero Acceleration Valleys' to cluster industries and attract investment in manufacturing projects at local levels. Furthermore, the Act mandates new rules in public procurement and renewable energy auctions, requiring public authorities to consider non-price criteria like sustainability and resilience, as detailed in Articles 25 and 26. It also sets a target for an annual CO2 injection capacity of 50 million tonnes by 2030.
The NZIA is a cornerstone of the broader European Green Deal and is closely connected to the Critical Raw Materials Act and the Net-Zero Europe Platform, which coordinates investment and training. As a very recent piece of legislation, it is the new framework itself, replacing a less streamlined approach, and is currently being implemented.