Presentation of Competitiveness Compass

On 29 January 2025, the Commission presented the Competitiveness Compass, the first major initiative of this mandate providing a strategic and clear framework to steer the Commission's work. The Compass sets a path for Europe to become the place where future technologies, services, and clean products are invented, manufactured, and put on the market while being the first continent to become climate-neutral.

The Compass identifies 3 core areas of action:

Innovation – The EU must close the innovation gap by creating an environment where innovative start-ups, effective industrial leadership and the diffusion of technologies across businesses thrive. The initiatives include ‘Apply AI’ and ‘AI Gigafactories' to drive industrial adoption of AI; action plans for advanced materials, quantum, biotech, robotics, and space technologies; and an EU Start-up and Scale-up Strategy that will address the obstacles that are preventing new companies from emerging and scaling up.

Decarbonization and competitiveness – The EU will help bring down high and volatile energy prices through an Affordable Energy Action Plan. It will set out a competitiveness-driven approach to decarbonization through its upcoming Clean Industrial Deal, while an Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act will extend accelerated permitting to sectors in transition. It will also launch action plans for energy-intensive sectors, such as steel, metals, and chemicals.

Security and resilience – The EU will reduce dependencies and increase its resilience and security by continuing to build effective trade partnerships with economies around the world. Through a new range of Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships, it will help secure a supply of raw materials, clean energy, sustainable transport fuels, and clean tech from across the world. It will also review public procurement rules to introduce a European preference in public procurement for critical sectors and technologies

How will the European Commission achieve these goals? By simplifying the administrative burden on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and creating a single set of rules across the European single market. In addition, the new legislation will incorporate taxation, labor and corporate law, as well as insolvency in “one single and simple framework”. There are plans for a Union of Skills and a focus on retaining talents, also to ensure smoother coordination of policies at both EU and national levels and to balance technological progress and shifting geopolitics with climate neutrality.