EU-Wide Advantages and Opportunities for the CETPartnership Joint Call 2025

1. Single Market Access

• 450 + million consumers & end-users: Successful projects can directly address a unified market, accelerating commercial uptake of clean-energy technologies across all 27 Member States plus associated countries.

• Pan-European procurement channels: Participation eases entry into joint public-procurement schemes (e.g., Innovation Procurement, PCP/PPI) that pool demand at EU level.

• Removal of tariff/non-tariff barriers: Harmonised CE-marking and mutual recognition reduce certification costs by up to 30 %, shortening “time-to-market” for pilot results.

2. Cross-Border Collaboration

• Mandatory trans-national consortia: The call structure rewards proposals that include at least three independent entities from three different countries, fostering technology co-development, shared risk and pooled IP.

• Knowledge exchange platforms: Access CETPartnership’s Thematic Working Groups where 400+ organisations share datasets, testing facilities and best practices.

• Smart Specialisation (S3) alignment: Partners can match regional S3 energy priorities, tapping ERDF co-funding streams and living-lab infrastructures in other Member States.

3. EU Policy Alignment

• European Green Deal: Projects that cut GHG emissions by ≥55 % by 2030 gain extra evaluation points and strengthen eligibility for later InvestEU or Innovation Fund scale-up finance.

• REPowerEU: Solutions targeting renewable integration and energy independence fit directly into the EU’s accelerated energy-transition agenda, improving exploitation prospects.

• Digital Europe & Twin Transition: Digitalisation of energy systems (IoT, AI, blockchain) leverages synergies with DEP and Horizon Europe Cluster 4, opening follow-on calls.

4. Regulatory Harmonisation

• Unified technical standards: Participation supports compliance with EU Network Codes and Renewable Energy Directive III, smoothing cross-border grid integration pilots.

• One-stop ethical & GDPR guidance: CETP offers templates and legal help-desk, lowering the administrative load for data-intensive pilots run in multiple jurisdictions.

5. Innovation Ecosystem Access

• Tier-1 research infrastructure: Eligibility to use JRC labs, the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) facilities, and 20+ open-access test beds.

• Talent mobility: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions and Erasmus+ internships can be annexed to projects for cost-efficient HR sourcing.

• Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): 600+ local nodes assist with IP management and commercial matchmaking across the EU.

6. Funding Synergies

• Cascade funding: SMEs may obtain up to €60 k in lump-sum vouchers for rapid experiments, reducing the dilution of equity capital.

• Stackable with national co-funding: CETP operates on a co-fund model; beneficiaries can blend EU and Member-State money, often achieving effective funding rates of 70–90 %.

• Plug-in to other instruments: Results can transition to LIFE Clean Energy Transition for market replication, or to EIB/EIF green-debt facilities for roll-out financing.

7. Scale and Impact Potential

• EU-wide deployment pathways: Project deliverables can be replicated through the EU’s Trans-European Energy Networks (TEN-E) and supported by the Connecting Europe Facility.

• Visibility & policy influence: Pilot outcomes feed into the Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan, positioning consortia to shape future regulatory and funding agendas.

• Climate-impact leverage: EU-level dissemination multiplies emissions-reduction effect, potentially qualifying projects for high-impact Horizon Results Booster services.

8. Strategic Value of Operating at EU Scale

• Risk diversification: Spreads technological, regulatory and market risks across several jurisdictions.

• Economies of scope: Exploits varied climatic zones and grid architectures to validate technology robustness, boosting investor confidence.

• Credibility for private co-investment: EU-backed label lowers perceived technology and policy risk, attracting VC/PE funds focused on sustainable energy.

Key Actionable Opportunities

1. Form a consortium with utilities, tech SMEs and research labs from at least three Member States to maximise CETP scoring.

2. Align work packages with Green Deal and REPowerEU KPIs to unlock complementary funding (e.g., Innovation Fund small-scale calls).

3. Embed standardisation tasks to pre-align prototypes with EU Network Codes, accelerating post-project certification.

4. Use the EEN to secure pilot sites in different regulatory zones, showcasing adaptability and strengthening the business case for EU-wide adoption.

5. Plan for post-grant financing by mapping eligibility for InvestEU and EIB green loans during the proposal phase.