On 10 September, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivered her State of the Union address, outlining the priorities and projects for the year ahead. One of her most striking statements was that “the future is electric”, a message EuropeOn couldn’t share more. As von der Leyen emphasised, electrification must be at the core of Europe’s competitiveness, energy security, and climate objectives.

Another important takeaway was von der Leyen’s reminder that “Europe’s independence will depend on its ability to compete in today’s turbulent times”. Competitiveness was, once again, one of the most recurrent topics throughout the speech, with the President underlining the need to sustain investment in digital and clean technologies, while reaffirming Europe’s climate and environmental commitments. The message was clear: the clean tech sector needs to remain anchored in Europe, and the Clean Industrial Deal must move from ambition to fast implementation.

This year’s State of the Union made it clear that Europe’s key challenges are deeply interconnected: competitiveness, energy independence, energy prices, and climate goals all hinge on scaling up European clean technology. Electrical contractors are already at the frontline, installing and maintaining the technologies that will electrify Europe and help deliver on these shared ambitions.

Read more about the role of electrical contractors contribute to achieving Europe’s goals.