Wol , And é
A icle
F amewo k Condi ions o Ne -Ze o Indus y Clus e s in
Eu ope
In e economics
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Wol , And é (2024) : F amewo k Condi ions o Ne -Ze o Indus y Clus e s in
Eu ope, In e economics, ISSN 1613-964X, Sciendo, Wa saw, Vol. 59, Iss. 5, pp. 267-275,
h ps://doi.o g/10.2478/ie-2024-0054
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ZBW – Leibniz In o ma ion Cen e o Economics 267
Fo um
And é Wol
F amewo k Condi ions o Ne -Ze o Indus y Clus e s in Eu ope
© The Au ho (s) 2024. Open Access: This a icle is dis ibu ed unde he
e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0 In e na ional License
(h ps://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/4.0/).
Open Access unding p o ided by ZBW – Leibniz In o ma ion Cen e
o Economics.
In e economics, 2024, 59(5), 267-275
JEL: L52, O14, O18
DOI: 10.2478/ie-2024-0054
And é Wol , Cen e o Eu opean Policy, Be lin,
Ge many.
Wi h he Ne -Ze o Indus y Ac (NZIA) being app o ed and
a se o inno a ion ini ia i es unde way, he EU has inally
aken an indus ial pe spec i e on i s ambi ious deca -
bonisa ion goals (Eu opean Union, 2024). I is based on
he insigh ha he g een ans o ma ion o indus y is no
limi ed o an exchange o ene gy sou ces bu in ol es en-
i ely new supply chains o clima e- iendly echnologies.
On many global ma ke s o key ne -ze o echnologies like
ba e ies and sola cells, Eu opean manu ac u e s play
only a mino ole in e ms o bo h ma ke sha e and in-
no a i e s eng h (Eu opean Commission, 2023). Wi hou
enhancing compe i i eness in hese new key indus ial
segmen s, he Eu opean g ow h model is a isk o pe -
sis en ex e nal dependencies and being educed o oc-
cupying a place on he echnological pe iphe y.
The op ion p o ided by he NZIA o in oducing special pub-
lic suppo schemes o u u e egional cen es o p oduc-
ion, so-called ne -ze o accele a ion alleys, could igge
a ca ch-up p ocess. Howe e , success ul indus y clus e s
a e no c ea ed on a d awing boa d. In addi ion o poli ically
con ollable ac o s, such as in as uc u e quali y, hei ex-
is ence depends on agglome a ion ad an ages a ising om
he co-loca ion decisions o ela ed indus ies. Sus ainable
g ow h esul s om he in e play o hese ac o s. Success-
ul clus e policies equi e policymake s o s imula e his in-
e play h ough a ge ed ins umen s ha suppo egional
ne wo king and add ess exis ing bo lenecks.
So a , li le a en ion has been paid o he po en ial cha -
ac e is ics and loca ions o u u e ne -ze o indus y clus-
e s in Eu ope. This a icle sheds ligh on he spa ial na-
u e o he compe i i eness issue by p o iding a sys em-
a ic o e iew o ele an loca ion ac o s and hei spa ial
dis ibu ion in Eu ope.
Clus e economics
Spa ial clus e ing o p oduc ion ac i i ies o e s a ange o
bene i s like local access o specialised inpu supplie s, a
la ge labou ma ke pool and enhanced exchange o aci
knowledge (Hende son, 1997). Despi e hese well-known
economic ad an ages, he e a e limi s o agglome a ion in-
cen i es. The limi s s em om, i s ly, he inc eased cos o
immo able asse s, such as land, caused by high demand
in agglome a ion egions. Secondly, he na u e o agglom-
e a ion ad an ages as ex e nali ies ha bou s he dange o
ee iding. Indi idual companies migh seek o p o i om
local knowledge ne wo ks while ying o p e en he ou -
low o hei own exclusi e knowledge (Wolman & Hincapie,
2015). As a esul , he le el o indus ial agglome a ion may
be insu icien om a wel a e pe spec i e.
Agains his backg ound, he heo y and p ac ice o policy-
induced indus ial clus e ing has enjoyed g ea popula i y
in Eu ope o some ime. I s ounding a he Michael Po e
sees egional clus e ing as a condi ion o exploi ing na-
ional compe i i e ad an ages (Po e , 2011). This school
s esses he ac i e oles o loca ion policies and collabo-
a ion be ween local ne wo ks in shaping and main aining
success ul clus e s (Hospe s & Beugelsdijk, 2002).
Nowadays, clus e s a egies a e omnip esen in egional
policymaking ac oss Eu ope. This in ol es decisions on
suppo measu es o main ain and u he de elop exis ing
clus e s. In heo y, wi h pe ec in o ma ion and policymak-
e s in en on maximising social wel a e, egional compe i-
ion would lead o an op imal spa ial dis ibu ion o clus e s.
Unde hese condi ions, policymake s would align he le el
o public clus e suppo wi h he ex en o posi i e ag-
glome a ion ex e nali ies expec ed (Neuma k & Simpson,
2015). In p ac ice, he na u e and limi a ions o ex e nali-
ies (and hei egional dispa i y) a e la gely unknown. An
uncoo dina ed subsidy compe i ion be ween egions hus
h ea ens o cause no only a was e o esou ces bu also
socially subop imal spa ial agglome a ion pa e ns.
Empi ical e idence (Engel e al., 2013; Falck e al., 2010;
G a & B oekel, 2020; Lehmann & Men e , 2018) s esses
ha he e alua ion o clus e policies equi es ca e ul
sc u iny o he local ci cums ances and he adequacy o
suppo measu es chosen. The uniqueness o he local
economic s uc u e, e.g. i s business adi ion and he
speci ic skills o i s wo k o ce, mus be espec ed by any
clus e s a egy.
En i onmen o ne -ze o echnology clus e s
The a ie y o echnologies cu en ly iewed as “s a egic”
o implemen ing he g een ans o ma ion complica es
he iden i ica ion o ele an loca ion ac o s. Ne e heless,
In e economics 2024 | 5
268
Fo um
Figu e 1
Sys em o undamen al loca ion ac o s o ne -ze o indus y alleys
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own illus a ion.
Ac i i y-speci ic
Regional le el
Knowledge exchange
Specialised
skill supply
Inpu -ou pu
Knowledge exchange
Specialised
skill supply
Rela ed indus ies
Ne -ze o indus ies
Downs eam
Ups eam
Pool o skilled
wo ke s
EU and na ional le el (P edominan ly)
Gene al In as uc u e F amewo k
condi ions
Demog aphicsEne gy mix
Regula o y
es ic ions
Educa ionBu eauc acy Tax sys em
Goods anspo
Ene gy access
ICT ne wo k
Resea ch base
Public adminis a ion
Ac i i y-speci ic
linkages
Inpu -ou pu
linkages
ce ain commonali ies can be highligh ed. Mos ne -ze o
echnologies a e only a an ea ly s age o hei li e cycle.
The e is he p ospec o signi ican u u e cos educ ions
as a esul o scaling and echnological imp o emen s. This
equi es con inuous op imisa ion o supply chains, which is
acili a ed by s able ela ionships wi h egional inpu sup-
plie s. Mo eo e , he no el y o he echnologies places
speci ic demands on he quali ica ions o he wo k o ce,
equi ing a la ge egional pool o specialised labou . A
dense local ne wo k o ela ed indus ies could he e o e
ep esen an impo an loca ional ad an age.
In addi ion, he high knowledge in ensi y o ne -ze o
echnologies c ea es he need o a high-quali y egion-
al esea ch in as uc u e. The li e a u e shows ha he
p esence o esea ch-in ensi e uni e si ies and esea ch
ins i u es in egional clus e s can inc ease gene al in-
no a ion ac i i y and boos R&D p oduc i i y (Hewi -
Dundas, 2013). They se e as a nucleus o new en e-
p eneu ial ac i i y o ma ke egional inno a ions (Ca ee
e al., 2014).
Local ene gy supply is likewise c i ical o ne -ze o ech-
nologies. Thei ne -ze o s a us hinges on su icien ac-
cess o enewable ene gy sou ces. Cu en ly, delays in
he expansion o elec ici y g ids a e inhibi ing he Eu o-
pean in eg a ion o elec ici y ma ke s (Pie zcke e al.,
2021). The local gene a ion po en ial o elec ici y om e-
newables could he e o e become a limi ing ac o o he
eme gence o ne -ze o echnology clus e s.
In addi ion, loca ion ac o s wi h gene al ele ance o
high- ech manu ac u e s ma e as well. One o hese is IT
connec i i y, due o he need o con inuous in o ma ion
exchange wi hin ac o ies and along supply chains (Fi s -
Ligh , 2024). Mo eo e , he exis ence o a well-de eloped
egional anspo in as uc u e ( oads, ailways, ha bo s,
ligh connec ions) is impo an o educing ade cos s.
Finally, he quali y o local public adminis a ion se ices
(speed, eliabili y) a ec s he speed o app o al p oce-
du es and he business- iendly implemen a ion o na-
ional and EU-wide laws. Figu e 1 summa ises he ac o s
discussed in a mul i-le el sys em. In wha ollows, we a -
emp o assess hese ac o s o EU egions.
Public in as uc u e quali y in EU egions
The loca ion ac o s ha de e mine a egion’s gene al
in as uc u e quali y a e measu ed i s . Whe e possi-
ble, we ely on Eu os a as a eliable da abase (Eu os a ,
2024), supplemen ed by o he public sou ces. As a e i o-
ial uni , we choose he NUTS 2 le el o easons o da a
a ailabili y.
Table 1 shows he selec ed indica o s o each in as uc-
u e ca ego y. Fo he “goods anspo ” ca ego y, we u i-
ZBW – Leibniz In o ma ion Cen e o Economics 269
Fo um
lise Eu os a da a on he densi y o anspo ne wo ks.
The quali y o ICT ne wo ks is e lec ed by indica o s om
he EU Regional Compe i i eness Index (Eu opean Union,
2022). To map he esea ch base, we d aw on da a om
he EU Regional Inno a ion Sco eboa d (Eu opean Union,
2023). Fo he quali y o egional public adminis a ion,
we ely on he esul s o egula su eys o he Eu opean
Quali y o Go e nmen Index (EQI) (Cha on e al., 2024).
Ene gy access ep esen s a special case in iew o he
ene gy ansi ion. Due o he unce ain y conce ning u-
u e local supply condi ions, we do no in eg a e i in ou
index, bu conside he local po en ial o elec ici y gen-
e a ion om enewables as a sepa a e limi ing ac o . Fo
his, we d aw on es ima es by Kakoulaki e al. (2021).
The indi idual indica o s a e agg ega ed in weigh ed o m
in o he espec i e ca ego ies. Following a p ocedu e
common in he li e a u e, we de e mine he weigh ing on
he basis o a (ca ego y-speci ic) P incipal Componen
Analysis (PCA). The indica o s a e included in he PCA in
s anda dised o ma . In each case, we selec he loadings
o he i s ac o as he basis o he weigh ing. This e-
sul s in ou in as uc u e indices.
The esul ing egional dis ibu ions o he index sco es
a e illus a ed in Figu e 2 as quin iles. Apa om a gen-
e al wes -eas di ide, i e eals a nuanced pa e n. While
he anspo in as uc u e is a ed as pa icula ly good
in economic co e egions, he e is li le co ela ion o ex-
is ing agglome a ion pa e ns in he o he in as uc u e
dimensions. Rega ding ICT quali y, coun y di e ences
a e pa icula ly s iking. Spain, Denma k and he Benelux
coun ies achie e high co e age wi h b oadband access
na ionwide. In con as , he indus ial egions o Ge ma-
ny and I aly only achie e below-a e age alues in some
cases. In he a ea o adminis a i e quali y, he Scandina-
ian coun ies a e almos uni e sally ound among he op
20%. A la ge pa o he Benelux egion and pa s o Ge -
many a e also among he op pe o ming egions. The as-
sessmen o he esea ch base, on he o he hand, poin s
s ongly o egional cen es wi hin he membe s a es.
To ob ain an agg ega e measu e o in as uc u e quali y,
di e en kinds o weigh ing and agg ega ion p ocesses
a e concei able. Companies om di e en ne -ze o in-
dus ies will di e in he speci ic weigh hey place on ce -
ain in as uc u e ca ego ies. Ye , i is gene ally plausible
ha he di e en ca ego ies a e no conside ed pe ec
subs i u es, gi en he dis inc kinds o in as uc u e se -
ices hey p o ide. We e lec his idea h ough a mul i-
plica i e agg ega ion (geome ic a e age) o he alues in
he ou in as uc u e sub-indices.
The esul ing op 10 egions a e shown in Table 2. These
egions a e concen a ed on ou membe s a es: Ge -
many, F ance, Denma k and he Ne he lands. These e-
gions sha e abo e-a e age pe o mance in almos all ca -
ego ies. Some, bu no all, o hem a e al eady impo an
Table 1
O e iew on in as uc u e indica o s
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own ep esen a ion.
Ca ego y Indica o Meaning Sou ce
T anspo Densi y o mo o ways A e age densi y o mo o ways (km pe km2 a ea) in he egion and neighbou ing
egions in 2021
Eu os a (2024)
Densi y o ailways A e age densi y o ailways (km pe km2 a ea) in he egion and neighbou ing
egions in 2021
Eu os a (2024)
Daily ligh passenge s A e age numbe o daily ligh passenge s in 2022 Eu os a (2024)
ICT B oadband access households Sha e o p i a e households wi h access o b oadband in e ne in 2021 Eu os a (2024)
B oadband access en e p ises Sha e o en e p ises wi h access o b oadband in e ne in 2021 Eu opean Union (2022)
High-speed in e ne Sha e o popula ion wi h high-speed in e ne connec ion in 2021 Eu opean Union (2022)
Resea ch
base
Human esou ces in science
and echnology
Numbe o employees in science and echnology pe capi a in 2023 Eu os a (2024)
Public R&D expendi u e Public expendi u e o esea ch and de elopmen pe capi a in 2022 Eu opean Union (2023)
Scien i ic publica ions Numbe o publica ions in in e na ional scien i ic jou nals by esea che s in he
egion pe capi a in 2023
Eu opean Union (2023)
Public
adminis-
a ion
P e en ion o co up ion P e en ion o co up ion in egional public adminis a ion acco ding o a su ey-
based index in 2024
Cha on e al. (2024)
Quali y and accoun abili y Quali y and accoun abili y o egional public adminis a ion acco ding o a
su ey-based index in 2024
Cha on e al. (2024)
Impa iali y Impa iali y o egional public adminis a ion acco ding o a su ey-based index
in 2024
Cha on e al. (2024)
In e economics 2024 | 5
270
Fo um
Table 2
Top en EU NUTS 2 egions in in as uc u e quali y (index alues)
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own calcula ions; Index alues s anda dised om 0 (lowes alue) o 100 (highes alue).
Rank NUTS Region
T anspo
in as uc u e
ICT
in as uc u e
Public
adminis a ion
Resea ch
base
To al
(geom. a .)
1NL32 Noo d-Holland 64.18 99.34 69.05 61.54 72.14
2DK01 Ho eds aden 32.43 86.30 79.35 100.00 68.65
3FR10 Ile de F ance 100.00 85.32 48.72 52.22 68.26
4DE71 Da ms ad 93.02 69.00 71.35 41.65 66.08
5DE21 Obe baye n 68.64 54.75 72.00 61.29 63.81
6NL22 Gelde land 41.99 96.37 78.16 50.30 63.16
7DEA2 Köln 58.81 63.08 65.33 57.60 61.13
8NL33 Zuid-Holland 31.82 98.75 72.97 53.16 59.09
9NL41 Noo d-B aban 41.46 96.13 71.65 40.53 58.33
10 FRK2 Rhône-Alpes 78.75 64.74 57.80 37.03 57.47
Figu e 2
Resul s o in as uc u e sub-indices in EU egions
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own calcula ions.
Le el anspo in as uc u e
Ve y low (1s quin ile)
Low (2nd quin ile)
Medium (3 d quin ile)
High (4 h quin ile)
Ve y high (5 h quin ile)
Resea ch base
Ve y low (1s quin ile)
Low (2nd quin ile)
Medium (3 d quin ile)
High (4 h quin ile)
Ve y high (5 h quin ile)
Le el ICT in as uc u e
Ve y low (1s quin ile)
Low (2nd quin ile)
Medium (3 d quin ile)
High (4 h quin ile)
Ve y high (5 h quin ile)
Public adminis a ion
Ve y low (1s quin ile)
Low (2nd quin ile)
Medium (3 d quin ile)
High (4 h quin ile)
Ve y high (5 h quin ile)
ZBW – Leibniz In o ma ion Cen e o Economics 271
Fo um
Figu e 3
Compa ison o in as uc u e quali y and high- ech
manu ac u ing in EU egions
Sou ce: Eu os a (2024); au ho ’s own calcula ions.
Obe baye n
Da ms ad
Köln
Ho eds aden
Ile de F ance
Rhône-Alpes
Gelde land
Noo d-Holland
Zuid-Holland
B aban
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0 100 200 300 400 500
In as uc u e index
Employees in high- ech manu ac u ing 2020 (in housands)
Noo d-
cen es o high- ech p oduc ion h oughou Eu ope (see
Figu e 3). Con e sely, howe e , no all he impo an high-
ech loca ions exhibi abo e-a e age in as uc u e qual-
i y. Coun e examples include Lomba dia (ITC4) and Lazio
(ITI4), which a e only in he mid ield.
Local indus y linkages in EU egions
Measu ing he ex en o egional indus y linkages is a di -
icul ask, due o he di e si y o inpu equi emen s o di -
e en ne -ze o echnologies. Mo eo e , Eu opean sec o al
s a is ics do no allow o a clea delinea ion o economic
ac i i ies iden i iable as ne -ze o. We ha e he e o e cho-
sen an al e na i e indi ec app oach o ou analysis based
on he use o US da a. The egional da ase s egula ly pub-
lished by he U.S. Bu eau o Economic Analysis (BEA) a e
cha ac e ised by a much ine g anula i y han Eu opean
sou ces such as Eu os a . We apply he me hodology used
by Delgado e al. (2016) o iden i y clus e s o echnologi-
cally closely ela ed indus ies. I is based on he calcula-
ion o mul idimensional simila i y ma ices o e alua e he
pai wise simila i y o indus ies. Based on hese ma ices,
indi idual indus ies a e g ouped in o disjoin ed clus e s
using es ablished me hods o clus e analysis.
The i s s ep is o iden i y he sec o s o he No h Ame i-
can Indus y Classi ica ion (NAICS) con aining ne -ze o
echnologies. The 2017 e sion o he NAICS comp ises
a o al o 1,057 di e en indus ies (so-called na ional in-
dus ies). Ou classi ica ion o hese na ional indus ies
as ne -ze o echnologies is based on a compa ison o he
con en desc ip ions ound in NAICS documen a ion wi h
he lis o speci ically named ne -ze o echnologies om
he NZIA (Eu opean Union, 2024). On his basis, we iden i-
y a o al o nine NAICS indus ies ha clea ly in ol e p o-
duc ion o ne -ze o echnologies, ei he in o al o in pa .
They a e hence o h e med “NZT indus ies”.
Table 3 shows he lis o indus ies and hei ele ance o
speci ic i ems on he NZIA lis . Since o he NAICS indus-
Table 3
Iden i ied ne -ze o echnology indus ies in he No h Ame ican Indus y Classi ica ion
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own ep esen a ion.
NAICS Code Ti le Example(s) o ele an p oduc s Rele an i em(s) on NZIA lis
333415 Hea ing equipmen (excep wa m ai
u naces) manu ac u ing
Hea pumps Hea pumps and geo he mal ene gy echnologies
333611 Tu bine and u bine gene a o se uni s
manu ac u ing
Wind u bines Onsho e wind and o sho e enewable echnolo-
gies
333912 Ai and gas comp esso manu ac u ing CO2 comp esso o ca bon cap u e
and s o age; comp esso s o
anspo o hyd ogen o biogas
Ca bon cap u e and s o age echnologies;
hyd ogen echnologies; sus ainable biogas and
biome hane echnologies; CO2 anspo and
u ilisa ion echnologies
333994 Indus ial p ocess u nace and o en
manu ac u ing
Low-emission me al mel ing (e.g.
hyd ogen-, biogas-based c ude
s eel p oduc ion)
Hyd ogen echnologies; sus ainable biogas and
biome hane echnologies
334413 Semiconduc o and ela ed de ice
manu ac u ing
Pho o ol aic cells, -modules; uel
cells
Sola echnologies; hyd ogen echnologies
334515 Ins umen manu ac u ing o measu ing and
es ing elec ici y
Powe measu ing equipmen Elec ici y g id echnologies
335311 Powe , dis ibu ion and special y
ans o me manu ac u ing
Powe ans o me s ( ol age
egula o s)
Elec ici y g id echnologies
335911 S o age ba e y manu ac u ing Ba e ies o elec ic ca s / la ge-
scale ene gy s o age
Ba e y and ene gy s o age echnologies
335929 O he communica ion and ene gy wi e
manu ac u ing
Elec ical cables Elec ici y g id echnologies
In e economics 2024 | 5
272
Fo um
NAICS
code NAICS i le
NACE equi .
(code) NACE equi . ( i le)
Technology Clus e 1
3321 Fab ica ed me al p oduc manu ac u ing C25 Manu ac u e o ab ica ed me al p oduc s
3331 Machine y manu ac u ing (o he han NZT indus ies) C28 Manu ac u e o machine y and equipmen n.e.c
333415 Hea ing equipmen (excep wa m ai u naces) manu ac u ing C28 Manu ac u e o machine y and equipmen n.e.c
333611 Tu bine and u bine gene a o se uni s manu ac u ing C28 Manu ac u e o machine y and equipmen n.e.c
333912 Ai and gas comp esso manu ac u ing C28 Manu ac u e o machine y and equipmen n.e.c
333994 Indus ial p ocess u nace and o en manu ac u ing C28 Manu ac u e o machine y and equipmen n.e.c
3366 Ship and boa building C30 Manu ac u e o o he anspo equipmen
3369 O he anspo equipmen C30 Manu ac u e o o he anspo equipmen
3371 Fu ni u e manu ac u ing C31 Manu ac u e o u ni u e
3391 Medical equipmen and supplies manu ac u ing C32 O he manu ac u ing
3399 Miscalleneous C32 O he manu ac u ing
Technology Clus e 2
334413 Semiconduc o and ela ed de ice manu ac u ing C26 Manu ac u e o compu e , elec onic and op ical p oduc s
3351 Elec ic ligh ing equipmen manu ac u ing C27 Manu ac u e o elec ical equipmen
335311 Powe , dis ibu ion, and special y ans o me manu ac u ing C27 Manu ac u e o elec ical equipmen
3353 Elec ical equipmen manu ac u ing (o he han NZT indus ies) C27 Manu ac u e o elec ical equipmen
335911 S o age ba e y manu ac u ing C27 Manu ac u e o elec ical equipmen
3359 O he elec ical equipmen and componen manu ac u ing
(o he han NZT indus ies)
C27 Manu ac u e o elec ical equipmen
335929 O he communica ion and ene gy wi e manu ac u ing C27 Manu ac u e o elec ical equipmen
Technology Clus e 3
3341 Compu e and pe iphe al equipmen manu ac u ing C26 Manu ac u e o compu e , elec onic and op ical p oduc s
334515 Ins umen manu ac u ing o measu ing and es ing elec ici y C26 Manu ac u e o compu e , elec onic and op ical p oduc s
3346 Manu ac u ing and ep oducing magne ic and op ical media C26 Manu ac u e o compu e , elec onic and op ical p oduc s
3364 Ae ospace p oduc and pa s manu ac u ing C30 Manu ac u e o o he anspo equipmen
Table 4
Resul s o clus e analysis
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own calcula ions. Ne -ze o echnology (NZT) indus ies a e highligh ed in g een.
ies may also con ain ele an componen s, and he se
o ne -ze o indus y echnologies is cons an ly e ol ing, i
should be unde s ood as a minimum co e lis .
To measu e he deg ee o simila i y be ween indus ies
wi h ega d o supply chain linkages, we use he cu en
e sion o he BEA’s na ional inpu -ou pu ables (BEA,
2024). We measu e he deg ee o inpu - ela ed simila i y
be ween wo indus ies as a co ela ion coe icien o al-
ue sha es o pu chased inpu s. Likewise, we calcula e he
ou pu - ela ed simila i y as he co ela ion o alue sha es
o cus ome indus ies. Finally, we compu e he deg ee
o simila i y in labou demand on he basis o da a om
he Bu eau o Labo S a is ics (BLS). I shows he numbe
o employees by occupa ional g oup in NAICS indus ies
(BLS, 2024). We calcula e he co ela ion be ween he em-
ploymen dis ibu ions o he di e en indus ies.
We hen pe o med k-means clus e analyses o he h ee
indi idual simila i y measu es o iden i y clus e s among
indus ies.1 Sec o s ha we e pa o he same clus e s
as he NZT indus ies in all h ee dimensions we e consid-
e ed linked indus ies. Table 4 summa ises he esul ing
clus e s o linked indus ies. The NZT indus ies co e ed
a e sp ead o e a o al o h ee clus e s.
Clus e s 1 and 2 a e pa icula ly in e es ing, as hey con-
ain a ious ne -ze o echnologies. To apply ou esul s o
he Eu opean le el, we ca y ou a mapping o he NAICS
indus ies included in hese wo clus e s o he coa se
wo-digi le el o he EU NACE classi ica ion (see las col-
umn in Table 4), using he conco dance able be ween
1 Fo each simila i y measu e, he op imal numbe o clus e s was cho-
sen based on he silhoue e me hod.
ZBW – Leibniz In o ma ion Cen e o Economics 273
Fo um
egions ha s and ou in bo h a eas a e “na u al candi-
da es” o hos ing ne -ze o indus y alleys. Table 5 lis s
such egions o he wo indus y g oups conside ed. The
i s column lis s egions wi h excep ionally high (> 80%
quan ile) alues bo h in ela ion o in as uc u e qual-
i y and employmen densi y o he espec i e indus y
g oups (“excellen condi ions”). Fo bo h indus y g oups,
his includes se e al egions in sou he n Ge many. Scan-
dina ian egions a e also ep esen ed. The second and
he hi d column includes egions ha only achie e ex-
cep ionally high alues in one o he wo measu es, and
ai ly high alues (50% < x < 80%) in he o he (“good con-
di ions”). This segmen includes a ious egions in Aus ia
and I aly. The highly indus ialised egions in Eas e n Eu-
ope a e ha dly ep esen ed in his segmen , as a esul o
hei mos ly low in as uc u e sco es.
A po en ial limi ing ac o is ene gy supply. As a gued
abo e, su icien access o elec ici y om enewable
sou ces can become c ucial o he expansion o p oduc-
ion capaci ies o ne -ze o echnologies. When compa -
ing es ima es by Kakoulaki e al. (2021), egions iden i ied
as o e ing excellen o good amewo k condi ions exhib-
i on a e age a signi ican ly smalle gene a ion po en ial
o elec ici y om enewables han he emaining NUTS 2
egions (see Figu e 5). This mainly esul s om he ac
ha clus e candida es a e la gely loca ed a away om
seacoas s, which a e bes sui ed o wind powe . Fu u e
p oduc ion cen es o ne -ze o echnologies could he e-
o e depend hea ily on he in low o enewable ene gy
om o he egions, pu ing u he p essu e on g id ex-
pansion.
NAICS and ISIC p o ided by he BEA and he ISIC-NACE
conco dance p o ided by Eu os a . This esul s in an in-
dus y g oup 1 comp ising “me al p oduc s, machine y
and (non-elec ic) equipmen ” and an indus y g oup 2
comp ising “elec onic p oduc s, elec ic componen s
and equipmen ”.
Figu e 4 illus a es he dis ibu ion o employmen in ensi-
ies in hese indus y g oups as he numbe o egional
employees pe capi a in 2020. The spa ial pa e ns show
a s ong simila i y, which e lec s he impo an ole o
in e -indus y agglome a ion e ec s and gene al egional
loca ion ac o s. La ge c oss- egional bands o in ensi e
indus ial ac i i y in he cen e o Eu ope a e con as ed
wi h indi idual local ho spo s a he pe iphe y. Rega ding
he “me al p oduc s, machine y and (non-elec ic) equip-
men ” g oup, he sou h and no hwes o Ge many, no h-
e n I aly/sou heas e n F ance, he no h o Poland and
he Czech Republic/Slo akia/Hunga y o m la ge c oss-
egional p oduc ion cen es. In he “elec onic p oduc s,
elec ic componen s and equipmen ” segmen , he e is
an e en s onge concen a ion on Cen al Eu ope o e all.
Pa s o Romania and Es onia a e impo an hubs in he
eas , as is cen al F ance in he wes .
Summa y assessmen o EU egions
A compa ison o he p e ious analyses allows o a en-
a i e iden i ica ion o high-po en ial egions. I , as he
agglome a ion li e a u e sugges s, gene al in as uc u e
quali y and he bene i s o indus y-speci ic agglom-
e a ion join ly de e mine he a ac i eness o a loca ion,
Figu e 4
Employmen densi y o iden i ied indus y g oups in EU NUTS 2 egions (2020)
Sou ce: Eu os a (2024); au ho ’s own calcula ions.
Below median
High (50% - 80% quin ile)
Ve y high (> 80% quin ile)
Below median
High (50% - 80% quin ile)
Ve y high (> 80% quin ile)
Employmen : me al p oduc s, machine y and (non-elec ic) equipmen Employmen : elec onic p oduc s, elec ic componen s and equipmen
In e economics 2024 | 5
274
Fo um
Discussion
In p inciple, he new Ne -Ze o Accele a ion Valleys p esen
a welcome oppo uni y o membe s a es o de elop e-
gions wi h good s a ing condi ions in o u u e p oduc ion
hubs. A dedica ed policy s a egy can suppo he de el-
opmen o such clus e s. I helps o o e come coo dina ion
p oblems in he loca ion decisions o he newly o ming
indus ies and hus acili a es he exploi a ion o agglom-
e a ion ex e nali ies. Howe e , an uncoo dina ed subsidy
Indus y g oup 1: Me al p oduc s, machine y and (non-elec ic) equipmen
Excellen condi ions Good condi ions
Ve y good in as uc u e,
e y high employmen densi y
Good in as uc u e,
e y high employmen densi y
Ve y good in as uc u e,
high employmen densi y
NUTS Region name NUTS Region name NUTS Region name
DE11 S u ga AT31 Obe ös e eich DEA1 Düsseldo
DE12 Ka ls uhe CZ06 Jiho ýchod DK05 No djylland
DE25 Mi el anken DE13 F eibu g FR10 Ile de F ance
DE26 Un e anken DE14 Tübingen FRJ2 Midi-Py énées
DEA5 A nsbe g DE23 Obe p alz NL41 Noo d-B aban
DK03 Syddanma k DE24 Obe anken
DK04 Mid jylland DE27 Schwaben
SE12 Ös a Mellans e ige DE72 Gießen
DE94 Wese -Ems
DED2 D esden
DEG0 Thü ingen
ES21 País Vasco
FI19 Länsi-Suomi
ITC1 Piemon e
ITC4 Lomba dia
SE21 Småland med öa na
Indus y g oup 2: Elec onic p oduc s, elec ic componen s and equipmen
Excellen condi ions Good condi ions
Ve y good in as uc u e, e y high
employmen densi y
Good in as uc u e, e y high
employmen densi y
Excellen in as uc u e, high employ-
men densi y
NUTS Region name NUTS Region name NUTS Region name
CZ01 P aha AT21 Kä n en DE30 Be lin
DE11 S u ga AT22 S eie ma k DE71 Da ms ad
DE12 Ka ls uhe AT31 Obe ös e eich DE91 B aunschweig
DE21 Obe baye n AT33 Ti ol DEA2 Köln
DE25 Mi el anken CZ02 S řední Čechy FI1D Pohjois- ja I ä-Suomi
DE26 Un e anken CZ06 Jiho ýchod
DEA5 A nsbe g DE13 F eibu g
FI1B Helsinki-Uusimaa DE14 Tübingen
FR10 Ile de F ance DE24 Obe anken
DE27 Schwaben
DE72 Gießen
DED2 D esden
DEG0 Thü ingen
EE00 Ees i
HU11 Budapes
SI04 Zahodna Slo enija
Table 5
Ne -ze o echnology clus e candida es by indus y g oup
Sou ce: Au ho ’s own calcula ions.
