LIFE projects on the world stage at COP30

Among the 56 000 delegates attending the COP30 UN Climate Change summit in Belém, Brazil were teams from 5 LIFE projects funded by the LIFE Clean Energy Transition (CET) sub-programme, keen to share their achievements and promote a range of clean energy innovations which are already having an impact across Europe.

Together with more than 250 other LIFE CET projects totalling some €220 million of EU investment since 2021, StreetHPReno, LifeGigaRegioFactory, LIFE CET WESHARE, LIFE CET ENERCOM FACILITY and LIFE CET TANDEMS are helping the EU to boost energy efficiency, increase renewable energy production and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. 

At COP30, LIFE projects featured in a special broadcast series — organised by We Don’t Have Time in cooperation with the European Commission — which focused on climate action, clean energy innovation and sustainable development. These events showcased tangible progress and highlighted how collaborative action drives effective climate strategies, innovation and sustainable development.

LIFE StreetHPReno — which together with LifeGigaRegioFactory took part in Reshaping Buildings For Good: Creating the Efficient City — upgrades residential heating systems in 3 European countries by promoting and installing heat pumps across entire neighbourhoods. The 3-year, €2.2 million project has developed a unique 3-pronged approach combining tailored heat pump packages, partnership with heat pump manufacturers and installers, and a collective buy-in scheme which could be further replicated in communities beyond Europe. 

Also aiming to scale up energy efficiency in social housing, the €2.5 million LifeGigaRegioFactory closed in October 2025 after winning the 2024 Gold World Habitat Award. The project helped homes across Italy, Belgium, Germany and France to reach net zero energy performance and significantly reduced the cost and time of net-zero retrofits. LifeGigaRegioFactory also featured in Accelerating Energy Efficiency: How to Replicate and Finance EU Projects Globally, with the team explaining how the project helps renovate up to 30 000 homes each year while supporting energy retrofitting manufacturers to develop their own renovation products.

LIFE CET WESHARE focuses on European business parks by encouraging energy collaboration among companies operating near each other. The €1.8 million project, which runs until 2027, featured in the Energy Efficiency On Demand: Scaling Implementation With Energy Efficiency as a Service broadcast. The project is setting up business energy communities in Belgium, Portugal and Spain to demonstrate how collaboration can encourage clean, affordable and sustainable energy use at local level.

LIFE CET ENERCOM FACILITY and LIFE CET TANDEMS both participated in the broadcast An Inclusive Energy Transition: The Role of Energy Communities. Energy communities owned and run by citizens, businesses and local authorities are already having an impact across the EU. The 4-year, €10 million LIFE CET ENERCOM FACILITY supports at least 140 emerging initiatives with lump sum grants to help them develop and implement business plans to trigger investment in renewable energy. The €1.8 million LIFE CET TANDEMS project, which closed in September 2025, developed an ‘open collaboration’ model which encourages municipalities, energy cooperatives and communities in Belgium, Bulgaria and the Netherlands to take an inclusive, hands-on approach to the just energy transition.

As COP30 enters its final stages, LIFE projects continue to accelerate the clean energy transition all over Europe, supporting the delivery of the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Directives.