These messages have been prepared in collaboration with Estonian Business and Innovation Agency (EIA), The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cleantech Estonia, The Ministry of Climate, and Estonian cleantech companies in the spring of 2024. A total of 8 sector-specific message packages have been created to support Estonian companies in exporting, cleantech being one of them.​

Cleantechs include companies that enable technology-based solutions and new business models providing solutions toglobal environmental challenges. Cleantech sector covers Agriculture & Food, Energy & Power, Materials & Chemicals, Transport & Logistics, Resources & Environment.

Materials

Presentation
Fact sheet
Fibenol story
Roofit.Solar story
Skeleton Technologies story

Leading the cleantech transformation 

Known for its digital society, Estonia is now ready to lead the world on a cleaner path. 

With strong government support and a vibrant cleantech sector, Estonia is driving sustainable economic development, and pioneering solutions in areas ranging from energy and power to materials and chemicals.  

Estonia’s compact size allows us to think big, act boldly, and focus on scalability and innovation from the outset. Collaboration thrives in our cleantech sector: peer-to-peer learning, knowledge sharing, and an industrial research ecosystem drive our growth (Cleantech ForEst). Our technological expertise, skilled workforce, modern infrastructure, and advanced capabilities all contribute to a sustainable future. We deliver not just hardware (Enefit Green’s wind turbines) and software (Bikeep) products, but services (Reverse Resources’ textile waste tracking) and processes (Starship Technologies’ delivery robots) that have a positive impact on the environment and the climate.  

We know what it takes to change: our economy has undergone a remarkable transformation, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions while experiencing drastic GDP growth of over 85% between 2000 and 2020. Looking ahead, Estonia aims to be fully powered by renewable energy by 2030. 

Being among the seven countries in the world that meet WHO air quality benchmarks, and with abundant forests Estonians set the standard for sustainable living and are globally recognised for our commitment to building prosperity within planetary boundaries.

Supportive facts
  • #1 in the number of start- ups per capita and entrepreneurial activity in Europe.
  • 10x the number of cleantech companies have grown tenfold since 2016.
  • 5 accelerators developing hardware and software.
  • 1/3 of the way to producing as much renewable energy as Estonia consumes annually by 2030 and beyond.
Sector strengths
  • Estonia has a strong and diverse CleanTech sector and we are leading innovation in all sectors, from energy and power to materials and chemicals.
  • The CleanTech sector is a home to redefined SMIs and corporations that have made sustainable entrepreneurship part
    of their core business strategy.
  • People in the CleanTech sector in Estonia know each other at the founder level, which has fostered peer-to-peer learning, interacting with each other and sharing experiences.
  • Estonia offers a wealth of funding opportunities, from venture capital to robust EU and national support programmes.

Prosperity within planetary boundaries 

The pursuit of growth can only be based on sustainability.

Estonia is ready to take the lead in establishing clean technologies as the cornerstone of a thriving economy. Being among the seven countries in the world that meet WHO air quality standards and with abundant forests, Estonia is a template for sustainable living. Estonia is making rapid progress to secure our position as the largest producer of renewable energy per capita and ensure its storage through new technologies (Skeleton Technologies’ ultracapacitors and Elestor’s hydrogen bromine flow batteries). Our ambition is to increase resource efficiency in production to contribute to a climate-neutral economy. From 2021 to 2027 we will fund companies with 33.5 million euros to help them move to more efficient production methods. 

Primed to grow the global cleantech sector 

We have all the ingredients to develop innovative and scalable cleantech solutions: funding, research, legislation, infrastructure, and expertise. 

Estonia offers an accessible test market for cutting-edge solutions. Our collaborative public sector and flexible regulations make it easy to test and obtain permits for cleantech initiatives. Leveraging the expertise of our dynamic start-up community, research driven innovation, and experienced technology companies, Estonia is primed to support, build, and scale cleantech solutions globally. The growing governmental focus on supporting R&D via Accelerate Estonia, science parks and universities creates an unrivalled collaborative ecosystem for industrial research. We also have two venture capital funds, 2C and Sunly Future Ventures, specialised in cleantech. 

Pioneering companies solving environmental challenges 

Our pioneering companies provide sustainable and ready to use solutions to solve global environmental challenges. 

Estonia is a world leader in unicorns per capita, our cleantech sector is just as ambitious. Estonia is already home to several science-based cleantech companies that are world leaders in their fields like renewable energy (Skeleton Technologies, Sunly), energy efficiency, sustainable materials (UP Catalyst) and bioengineering (Icosagen). Our businesses focus on scalability and sales from the start. Thanks to Estonia’s unique agility, our cleantech solutions can reach the market faster and scale globally. Biotechnology, circular economy, and zero-waste initiatives are just a few areas where Estonian cleantech is providing solutions to growing needs.