The European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan) is a key stepping-stone in accelerating the transition towards a climate-neutral energy system. It focuses on developing and scaling up strategic energy technologies in a fast and cost-competitive way.
The SET Plan was established in 2007 and since the creation of the energy union in 2015, it has become one of the main instruments of the energy union’s 5th pillar on research, innovation and competitiveness.
It aligns national research and innovation programmes with the EU’s clean energy policy objectives, focusing on strategic autonomy, competitiveness, and decarbonisation.
By improving new technologies and bringing down their costs through coordinated national research efforts, the SET Plan helps promote cooperation among EU countries, companies and research institutions. It achieves this by facilitating the coordination of national research, innovation and market uptake activities to develop and scale low-carbon energy among EU and associated countries.
The Governance of the SET Plan
Since 2024, the SET Plan has shifted gears and is legally enshrined in the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA), with a new formal Steering Group established at high-level. Its geographical scope has been extended to cover all EU and EEA countries (as observers), and in early November 2025, a new and more ambitious SET Plan governance was adopted by the Steering Group.
The SET Plan governance introduces a novel approach with Common Implementation and Investment Plans for each technology, which the SET Plan Community will define to further enhance synergies between EU countries, industry and energy research stakeholders.
The Common Implementation and Investment Plans will outline targets and milestones, along with strategic research and innovation agendas. These plans will include concrete commitments from EU countries through public funding and private investments aimed at realising the thematic vision for each strategic energy technology.
Key action areas
The SET Plan activities are clustered into 10 actions for research and innovation. They address the whole innovation chain, from research to market uptake, and tackle both financing and regulatory frameworks
- integrating renewable technologies in the energy systems
- reducing costs of technologies
- new technologies and services for consumers
- resilience and security of energy systems
- new materials and technologies for buildings
- energy efficiency for the industry
- competitiveness in the global battery sector and e-mobility
- renewable fuels and bioenergy
- carbon capture and storage
- nuclear safety
These actions are implemented by 15 Implementation Working Groups (IWGs), each focusing on one key technology.
Following the Communication on the revision of the SET Plan, 5 temporary task forces have been established to support the work of the IWGs and European Technology Innovation Platforms (ETIPs). They will operate between 2025 – 2027, and will provide recommendations to the SET Plan community to better integrate several topics into their work, including circularity and materials substitution, R&I for societal needs, digitalisation, skill, and market access.
Communication and monitoring
The SET Plan has several communication and monitoring tools, which are listed and described below.
SET Plan Annual Progress Report 2025
Published on the occasion of the 19th SET Plan conference in Odense, Denmark, the SET plan progress Report 2025 highlights the SET Plan’s role in coordinating EU and national research and innovation (R&I) agendas to foster a more competitive, secure and sustainable Europe, along with its achievements during the last 12 months.
In 2024, the SET Plan’s role was reinforced under the framework of the Net-Zero Industry Act, and its Steering Group was granted a higher legal status.
Following this, in 2025, the Commission invited all EU countries and European Economic Area countries to join the new High-Level Steering Group and began updating the SET Plan’s governance structure. It will strengthen the SET Plan, providing the necessary tools to meet Europe’s increased ambition for industrial leadership in low-carbon technologies. This will be achieved by enhancing cooperation between policymakers, industry, academia, research institutes, and public and private investors.
- 2024 – SET plan progress report 2024 - Publications Office of the EU
- 2023 – SET Plan Progress report 2023 - Publications Office of the EU
- 2022 – SET plan progress report 2022 - Publications Office of the EU
- 2021 – SET plan progress report 2021 - Publications Office of the EU
- 2020 – Implementing the SET plan - Publications Office of the EU
- 2019 – Implementing the SET plan - Publications Office of the EU
- 2018 – SET Plan delivering results - Publications Office of the EU
- 2017 – SET Plan – 10th anniversary report
- 2016 – Transforming the European Energy System through Innovation
The EU's SET Plan Information System (SETIS) is the open-access information, knowledge management and dissemination system for the SET Plan. It provides information on the state of low-carbon technologies. It also assesses the impact of energy technology policies, reviews the costs and benefits of various technological options, and estimates implementation costs. This information is useful for the European industrial initiatives, private companies, trade associations, the European Energy Research Alliance, international organisations, and financial institutions.
The annual SET Plan conferences have been organised since 2008 and offer a chance for decision-makers, stakeholders and researchers to assess the SET Plan’s progress and the most recent developments in energy, research and innovation.
- 19th SET Plan Conference 4-5 November 2025
- 18th SET Plan conference: Scaling up research, innovation and competitiveness in clean energy technologies 14-15 November 2024
- 17th SET Plan conference – Energy research and innovation for a competitive Europe 13-14 November 2023
- News: The 17th SET Plan Conference - Research and Innovation for a Competitive Europe 10 November 2023
- 16th SET Plan conference - Towards a new Strategic Energy Technology Plan 9-10 November 2022
SET Plan countries report about their activities within the SET Plan through their National Energy and Climate Plans (NCEPs).
The SETIS reporting and IWG work feed into the yearly progress reports on competitiveness of clean energy technologies (CPR).
Coordination and support
European Technology and Innovation Platforms
The European Technology and Innovation Platforms (ETIPs) were created to support the implementation of the SET Plan by bringing together EU countries, industry, and researchers in key areas. The 11 ETIPs promote the market uptake of key energy technologies by pooling funding, skills, and research facilities.
- ETIP Wind
- ETIP PV
- Ocean Energy Europe
- ETIP Geothermal
- European Construction Technology Platform
- Smart Networks for Energy Transition
- ETIP on Renewable Heating and Cooling
- ETIP Bioenergy
- Zero Emissions Platform
- Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform
- Batteries Europe
European Energy Research Alliance
The European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) aims to accelerate new energy technology development by cooperating on pan-European programmes. It brings together more than 250 research organisations from 30 countries, involved in 18 joint programmes. EERA plays an important role in promoting coordination among energy researchers in alignment with the SET Plan objectives and in facilitating technology transfer to the industry.
Related links
- Revision of the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (COM/2023/634)
- Publication: The Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan (September 2019)
- Investing in the development of low carbon technologies (SET Plan) (COM/2009/519)
- Communication - A European strategic energy technology plan (SET Plan) - Towards a low carbon future (COM/2007/723)
- SETIS - SET Plan Information System