The European Commission has officially presented the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), a major legislative proposal aimed at increasing Europe’s industrial competitiveness, accelerating decarbonisation and strengthening strategic autonomy in essential industrial sectors. Published on 4 March 2026 by the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, the initiative targets raising manufacturing’s share of EU GDP from 14.3% today to 20% by 2035, preserving or creating around 150,000 jobs in key industrial sectors. This makes it one of the EU’s most ambitious industrial policy measures introduced in recent years.
The proposed Act seeks to increase demand for low-carbon and “Made in EU” technologies and products, while promoting the growth of industrial manufacturing capacity within the European Union. The IAA introduces four main tools to achieve these goals:
First, a “one project, one digital procedure” permitting system using a Single Access Point through the European Business Wallet, replacing today’s divided national processes.
Second, the creation of Industrial Acceleration Areas with streamlined, area-wide permits to attract investment and decarbonisation projects, as well as provide more certainty for investors.
Third, the use of public procurement and public incentives conditioned on low-carbon and “Made in EU” criteria for steel, cement, aluminium, and net-zero technologies to foster the demand needed to make green industrial production commercially advantageous.
Fourth, introducing new conditions on foreign direct investments above €100 million in batteries, EVs, solar PV, and critical raw materials, to maximize added value for the EU economy: a minimum 50% employment of Union workers and requirements on local content, ownership, knowledge and technology transfer, and R&D.
The initiative is the legislative centrepiece of the Commission’s Clean Industrial Deal and is connected to the Net-Zero Industry Act, the Automotive Action Plan, and the EU Economic Security Strategy. It represents another step in the EU’s long-term objective of combining economic competitiveness with climate objectives, as well as ensuring its independence in critical sectors. It will now enter the process of being discussed and negotiated by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU before becoming an official law.
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