From heat-driven processes to the use of mechanical and electric forces (Processes4Planet partnership) (IA)
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for From heat-driven processes to the use of mechanical and electric forces (Processes4Planet partnership) (IA) offering max €45.0M funding💰 Funding Details
Funding Description
1. Snapshot of the Call
* Call title: From heat-driven processes to the use of mechanical and electric forces (Processes4Planet partnership)
* Call ID: HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-31
* Type of Action: HORIZON-IA (Innovation Action) – single-stage submission
* Opening / Deadline: 22 May 2025 → 23 Sept 2025 – 17:00 (Brussels)
* Indicative EU contribution per grant: up to €45 million (70 % funding rate for profit entities; 100 % for non-profit, universities & research orgs)
* Expected project duration: 36–60 months
* Target TRL: start ≈ TRL-4/5, end ≈ TRL-7 (first-of-a-kind demo)
2. What the Grant Funds
The call finances the design, upscale, integration and demonstration of electrically driven separation / drying / activation units that substitute fossil-based heat in energy-intensive industries (EIIs). Eligible cost items include:
* R&D and engineering of novel electro-mechanical or electro-chemical processes (e.g. membranes, power ultrasound, electro-osmosis, mechanical activation).
* Redesign or retrofitting of process equipment, auxiliary systems, advanced materials.
* Construction and operation of at least one industrial pilot/ demonstrator in a realistic use-case (TRL ≥ 6).
* Digital twins, process control, safety and flexibility measures.
* Life-cycle assessment, GHG-avoidance methodology (Innovation Fund compliant).
* Business modelling, exploitation planning, standardisation, IP and certification work.
* Skills development, worker training, societal & environmental impact assessment.
* Dissemination, communication, clustering with Processes4Planet and JRC platforms (INCITE, EIGL).
Excluded: conventional electric heaters or heat-pumps; purely exploratory lab work below TRL-4.
3. Eligibility Rules
* Consortium: ≥ 3 independent legal entities from ≥ 3 different EU or Associated Countries, at least 1 industrial end-user from an EII sector (chemicals, steel, cement, glass, pulp & paper, etc.).
* Geographical: China-based entities are not eligible in Innovation Actions; other non-EU partners must bring own funding unless listed in Horizon Europe Guide.
* Legal: All public entities must have a Gender Equality Plan in place.
* Technical: Proposal must commit to ≥ 25 % energy savings vs. BAT and a credible pathway to significant GHG reduction (aligned with the 90 % 2040 target).
* Financial: Usual Horizon Europe requirements on operational & financial capacity apply.
4. Evaluation Focus
1. Excellence (1/3): technological novelty of electrified process, sound methodology, cross-disciplinary approach.
2. Impact (1/3): quantified energy/GHG savings, competitiveness, scalability; *mandatory* business case & exploitation strategy outlining route to full-scale deployment and financing (Innovation Fund, InvestEU, national CAPEX, etc.).
3. Quality & Efficiency (1/3): work-plan, risk management, consortium competence, budget realism.
5. Budget & Cost Sharing
* Funding rate: 70 % of eligible direct costs for for-profit entities; 100 % for non-profit.
* Indirect costs: flat-rate 25 %.
* Typical total project budget: €15–25 million; the upper ceiling is €45 million.
* Pre-financing: ~40 % of EU contribution after Grant Agreement signature.
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Remember
Achieving the Processes4Planet objectives (climate-neutral, circular, digitalised EIIs) and providing a replicable business-viable demonstrator are non-negotiable success factors.
📊 At a Glance
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🇪🇺 Strategic Advantages
EU-Wide Advantages and Opportunities for "From heat-driven processes to the use of mechanical and electric forces (Processes4Planet partnership) (IA)"
1. Single Market Access
- 450 + million consumers & 23 % of global GDP: Demonstrating electrified separation/drying units in one Member State enables immediate roll-out across the entire customs-free Single Market, accelerating pay-back periods and creating first-mover advantages.
- Unified product standards (CE-marking, Ecodesign, Machinery Regulation) shorten time-to-market for new electro-mechanical equipment and membranes, allowing beneficiaries to commercialise one compliant design instead of multiple national variants.
- Pan-European reference plants: A success case in, for example, the chemical sector in the Netherlands can be replicated in pulp & paper in Finland or food processing in Spain without additional certification hurdles, multiplying revenues.
2. Cross-Border Collaboration & Knowledge Exchange
- Mandatory multi-country consortia under Horizon Europe make it easier to team up with best-in-class actors (e.g. French ultrasound SMEs, German membrane suppliers, Italian mechanical-activation labs) and share IP via EU KICs, EIT Manufacturing, and Processes4Planet.
- Interregional pilot lines: Demonstrations can run in one region while digital twins are hosted by a partner’s competence centre elsewhere, lowering CAPEX for each partner.
- Skilling the workforce: Joint curricula funded by Erasmus+ and ESF+ can be deployed EU-wide, ensuring operators from Portugal to Poland master new electrified processes.
3. Strong Alignment with EU Policy Priorities
- European Green Deal & Fit-for-55: Direct contribution to the 90 % GHG-reduction target for 2040 and Net-Zero Industry Act objectives.
- REPowerEU: Electrification cuts fossil-fuel heat demand, directly reducing imported gas dependency.
- Digital Europe & Data Spaces: Project-generated process data can feed into the European Manufacturing Data Space, supporting AI-driven optimisation.
- Circular Economy Action Plan: Electrified separation facilitates higher-purity secondary raw materials, feeding EU recycling targets.
4. Regulatory Harmonisation Benefits
- EU-wide environmental permitting (IED, ETS): One Life-Cycle Assessment and GHG avoidance methodology accepted across Member States streamlines expansion.
- State-Aid exemptions for IPCEI & CEEAG: Harmonised rules allow parallel national co-funding without breaching competition law.
- Upcoming Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM): Early decarbonisation positions EU exporters ahead of global competitors facing CBAM levies.
5. Access to Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem
- 2500+ research organisations active in advanced materials, electrochemistry and ultrasound can be brought in via Horizon Europe without national bilateral agreements.
- Test-before-invest facilities (EIT Manufacturing, Catapult-like pilot plants) reduce technological risk.
- Open Science & EOSC: Shared datasets, models and best practices boost replication and increase citation impact.
6. Funding Synergies & Leverage
- Innovation Fund: Up to 60 % CAPEX/OPEX support for first-of-a-kind commercial plants after the Horizon IA pilot.
- InvestEU & EIB green loans: De-risked by successful Horizon results, enabling large-scale deployment financing at preferential rates.
- Regional funds (ERDF / Just Transition Fund): Aligns with Smart Specialisation priorities in energy-intensive regions (e.g. Silesia, Asturias).
- Connecting with IPCEI Hy2Use & Hy2Tech: Integrating green-hydrogen electrolysis as complementary electricity source.
7. Scale & Impact Potential
- Energy-intensive industries = 20 % of EU manufacturing GVA; achieving 25 % energy savings could translate into €15 bn annual utility cost reduction and ~90 Mt CO₂eq avoided.
- Export of EU standards: Establishing benchmarks for electrically driven separations positions EU firms as global technology providers.
- Resilience & Strategic Autonomy: Domestic production of membranes, power-ultrasound generators and electro-chemical stacks reduces reliance on third-country equipment.
8. Strategic Value of Acting at EU Level
- National-scale pilots often lack diversified feedstocks, grid conditions and regulatory regimes. An EU consortium validates robustness across multiple contexts, convincing investors and regulators faster.
- Critical mass: Pooling Horizon Europe budgets (typ. €10–15 m) with industrial in-kind contributions achieves demonstration scales (TRL 6-7) rarely affordable nationally.
- Collective branding via Processes4Planet gives project outcomes higher visibility, easing standardisation in CEN/CENELEC and uptake in EU taxonomy criteria.
Key Take-Away
Leveraging Horizon-IA funding through this call offers an unparalleled platform to develop, de-risk and mainstream electrified industrial processes across the Single Market, tapping into a cohesive policy, regulatory and financial landscape that no single Member State can match.
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