The European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) and SolarPower Europe have requested the European Commission to include ‘make-in-Europe’ provisions in public procurements to stimulate demand for the solar manufacturing sector.

Highlighting the stalled solar deployment and the existential threat to the European solar manufacturing sector, the associations demanded political commitments and a roadmap to rebuild and grow European solar manufacturing capacities along the entire value chain.

They stated that including the ‘Made-in Europe’ provisions within public procurements will also provide fair and open access to such procurements for all eligible suppliers.

The associations said the European Union’s Net-Zero Industry Act requires coordinated political support for its implementation. The Act aims to help Europe’s component manufacturing reach 40% of its annual deployment of renewables and manufacture 30 GW of solar photovoltaics.

The associations said Europe is a wave of industrial closures and bankruptcies in the solar sector, which requires the European Commission’s urgent attention.

Earlier this year, solar cell and module manufacturer Meyer Burger Technology announced that its German subsidiaries, Meyer Burger (Industries) and Meyer Burger (Germany), initiated insolvency proceedings as restructuring efforts were unsuccessful.

They urged the Commission to utilize the meeting of ministers and the European Solar PV Industry Alliance Annual Forum on September 30, 2025, to suggest amendments to the Net Zero Industry Act.

The associations stated that the Act should reward projects that demonstrate resilience, utilize European content, and comply with cybersecurity requirements.

ESMC and SolarPower Europe demanded a new clean tech manufacturing fund, under the multi-annual financial framework, dedicated to growing Europe’s solar manufacturing sector in Europe.

They added that such a fund could channel multiple sources of support, including grants, loans, and de-risking instruments for industrializing clean tech, and cover capital and operational expenditures, in the shape of production-based support. The support could be extended to both mature and innovative technologies.

The fund could also be complemented with a mechanism that brings in national support through auctions-as-a-service.

The solar associations suggested a temporary extension of operational expenditure support provided under the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework to all segments of the solar supply chain.

The suggestions to the Commission also included increasing funding and loan support from the European Investment Bank, which must explicitly be regarded as a de-risking facility for solar manufacturing investments. It must include ‘Made in Europe’ criteria in the projects it supports and offer low-interest loans to project developers that adhere to this requirement while procuring solar modules and inverters.

Recently, ESMC recommended to the Commission that solar products be brought under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism’s ambit, as they rely heavily on carbon-intensive materials such as aluminum and steel, which are already covered by the adjustment mechanism.

In 2023, SolarPower Europe had warned that the continent’s solar industry was running the risk of bankruptcies over cheaper Chinese solar imports.