Date / Heure
25/06/2026
13 h 00 min - 15 h 00 min

Emplacement
European Parliament
Rue Wiertz, 60
Brussels

Registration (required) 

Confrontations Europe is pleased to invite you to its upcoming conference, “For a Sovereign Made in Europe: Producing, Investing, and Protecting in a Context of Major Transitions for Europe’s Strategic Industries”, which will take place on Thursday, 25 June 2026 at the European Parliament. 

More than a year after the presentation of the Draghi report, and as Chinese overcapacity continues to grow in several key areas of the ecological transition (EVs, batteries, solar panels, heavy industry and “hard-to-abate” sectors such as steel and minerals), the need for a form of “smart protectionism” has now become widely accepted among various Member States and within the major industries driving the continent. 

 This momentum has been translated into regulatory terms with the announcement, on 4 March, by Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné of the Industrial Accelerator Act. Designed as a new framework tightening access to European public procurement and state aid schemes—particularly in the field of decarbonisation technologies—it paves the way for increased EU support for critical industrial sectors weakened by rising energy and raw material prices and the disruption of certain value chains. 

 These sectors, although representing only 15% of EU production capacity, sit upstream of many industrial ecosystems that would also be affected by a weakening of these strategic industries. 

In this context, the purpose of this conference would be to highlight the main innovations of the legislation, the level of European-origin requirements and their definition, the creation of pilot markets, but also more broadly the debate between advocates of a “Made in Europe” approach and those of a “Made with Europe” approach, as well as the implementation of sustainable and comprehensive strategies through the various tools available to the Union (trade agreements, ETS/CBAM, state aid framework) to ensure effective public action in support of industries under pressure. 

Event program 

Opening speeches and introductory remarks  

The detailed program will be avaible very soon  

Introduction by François Kalfon, Co-organizer of the conference and Member of the European Parliament (S&D, France). 

Panel 1 | « Is Made in Europe the lifeline of our competitiveness ? »

• Discussions on the definition of “local content” and the implications of including partner countries within its scope.
• Exchange on the challenges linked to the gradual implementation of the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), as well as the role of the automotive sector as a testing ground.
• Discussions on the advantages and limitations of a European label in public procurement.
• Reflection on the defence of “Made in Europe” as both a response to competitiveness challenges and a tool to protect critical and strategic sectors, including defence.  

Panel 2 | What new EU trade policy is needed to promote production in Europe ? 

• Discussion on sustainably restoring European competitiveness in a context of high energy and raw material costs, alongside the role of pilot markets in shaping the industrial successes of tomorrow.
• Examination of measures to ensure fair competition within European markets, including state aid frameworks and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), as well as the reform of foreign subsidy rules to safeguard healthy international competition, notably in light of Chinese support for green industries and US policies toward Big Tech.Reflection on skills and training challenges in supporting industrial transformation.
• Exchange of feedback from sectors and stakeholders that have begun partially reshoring their activities.Analysis of trade agreements and mirror clauses, and their implications for reciprocity mechanisms. 

Conclusion 

Michel Derdevet, President of Confrontations Europe  

We would be delighted to welcome you and have you contribute to these high-level exchanges during the Q&A sessions held at the end of each roundtable. Please note that, due to limited capacity and constraints related to the accreditation system, registered participants are required to attend the entire conference.

A confirmation email will follow your registration to validate your participation.

P.S. : Don’t forget to bring your ID card used for registration for security screening.