SUN2X-SET: new EU-funded project set to advance Direct Solar Fuels and accelerate Europe’s clean energy transition

11 05 2026

We are excited to kick off a new EU-funded project set to advance Direct Solar Fuels (DSF) and accelerate Europe’s clean energy transition 🌱

Backed by the European Union, SUN2X-SET will bring together key stakeholders from industry, academia, research, policy, and civil society to establish the EU Forum for Direct Solar Fuels R&I and become a recognised actor under the Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan framework.

The SUN2X-SET consortium, coordinated by the EERA – The European Energy Research Alliance, brings together key partners, including the University of Warsaw; French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA); CO2 Value Europe (CVE), an international and non-profit association representing the entire Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) value chain in Europe; and EERA, being the largest energy research community in Europe. The four partners will combine complementary expertise and a strong track record in solar fuels research to drive innovation, continuity, and collaboration in DSF technologies.

Joanna Kargul, Head of Solar Fuels Lab at CeNT UW is leading the key Work Package on Research and Innovation priorities for direct solar fuels. In this endeavour, she will be supported by teams from the CEA, EERA and CVE.

Building on the SUNERGY – Fossil-free fuels and chemicals for a climate-neutral Europe and the SUNER-C Project, the new project aims to:
🔹 Develop Europe’s first Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) and Technological Roadmap for DSF;
🔹 Align priorities with the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan);
🔹 Lay the foundation for a strong, inclusive stakeholder forum with the ambition to become a recognised ETIP.

💡 Direct Solar Fuels use sunlight to produce fuels like hydrogen, offering a promising pathway to decarbonise industry, boost energy resilience, and strengthen Europe’s competitiveness in clean energy.

🗣️ “With SUN2X-SET, we are bringing together Europe’s leading expertise to build a strong, coordinated community that can define clear research priorities and support industrial scale-up,” said Gabriele Gaffuri, SUN2X-SET Project Coordinator from EERA.

Over the next two years, SUN2X-SET will help shape the future of solar fuels innovation in Europe and contribute to a climate-neutral economy, driving collaboration and advancing DSF technologies together with partners across Europe.