EU-Wide Advantages & Opportunities for the "Clean Energy Transition Co-Funded Partnership" (HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-10)

1. Single Market Access – 450 + Million Consumers

• Pan-European Commercialisation: Demonstrated solutions can be rolled out simultaneously across 27 Member States without tariff or customs barriers, drastically shortening time-to-market for clean-energy hardware and services.

• Demand Aggregation: Utilities, city authorities and industrial off-takers can pool procurement, creating larger order volumes that de-risk first-of-a-kind deployments and improve bankability.

• Uniform Consumer Rights & Data Rules: Harmonised consumer protection (e.g., Energy Labelling, GDPR) gives innovators a predictable framework for EU-wide product launches and user-centric digital energy services.

2. Cross-Border Collaboration & Knowledge Exchange

• Built-in Transnational Calls: The Partnership’s annual joint calls (2025-2027) fund multinational consortia, ensuring each project has partners from at least two countries by design.

• Living Labs Across Climates: Pooling Nordic, Continental, Mediterranean and Island test-beds allows validation of technologies under diverse grid codes, climate conditions and user profiles.

• Talent & Infrastructure Mobility: Researchers gain rapid access to >300 EURI facilities (EERA, JRC, ESRF, etc.) via simplified Horizon Europe mobility rules.

3. Alignment with EU Flagship Policies

• European Green Deal & Fit-for-55: Directly contributes to 55 % GHG reduction by 2030 through decarbonisation of power, buildings, transport and industry.

• REPowerEU Acceleration: Specific call topics can fast-track renewable integration (e.g., PV, wind, heat pumps) that remedy fossil-fuel dependency highlighted by the energy crisis.

• Updated SET Plan & ‘Net-Zero Industry Act’: Projects will feed validated R&I results into strategic value chains (batteries, electrolyzers, heat pumps), supporting EU manufacturing targets.

4. Regulatory Harmonisation Advantages

• Single Connection & Market Codes: Alignment with EU Network Codes enables one-stop certification for smart-grid components across all TSOs/DSOs.

• Unified Support Frameworks: Compatibility with EU Taxonomy & State-Aid rules simplifies downstream CAPEX support (e.g., CfDs, IPCEIs) once R&I is complete.

• Joint Standard-Setting: Partnership results can be channelled into CEN-CENELEC technical committees, shaping EU-wide standards before global adoption.

5. Access to Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem

• Critical Mass of Expertise: Over 500 organisations already co-developed the SRIA; new entrants tap into a pre-aligned network of universities, RTOs, clusters and ETIPs.

• Synergy with Digital Europe & Chips Act: Clean-energy digital twins, AI-based grid optimisation and power electronics can leverage HPC and semiconductor pilot lines financed under complementary programmes.

• Venture Capital & EIB Visibility: Horizon label improves due-diligence credibility, unlocking blended finance from the EIC Accelerator, InvestEU and national green funds.

6. Funding Synergies & Leverage Effect

• 30 % EU Co-funding Rate: Every €1 of Horizon money crowds-in ~€2.3 of national/regional funds, tripling total R&I budgets.

• Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP): Up to €5 M per third-party grant cascades resources to SMEs and start-ups, creating a pipeline for EIC Transition and LIFE Clean Energy Tech.

• Complementarity with Cohesion & Recovery Funds: Results can be scaled via ERDF/Just Transition allocations (2021-2027) and Recovery & Resilience Plans (RRPs), ensuring quick deployment in less-advanced regions.

7. Scale & Systemic Impact

• System-Level Demonstrators: Cross-sector pilots (power-heat-mobility-industry) at regional scale (e.g., hydrogen valleys, positive-energy districts) accelerate Europe-wide replication.

• Societal Reach: Built-in consumer-engagement work streams foster pan-European demand-response schemes, community energy models and energy-poverty mitigation.

• Climate Neutrality Multiplier: The partnership’s integrated platform approach can reduce duplication of national efforts, ensuring faster progress toward the EU’s 2050 net-zero target.

8. Strategic Value vs. National-Only Efforts

• Avoids Fragmentation: Joint Programming consolidates >20 national calls into one strategic funnel, aligning TRL progression and avoiding parallel, incompatible pilots.

• Negotiation Power: A single, large EU market pull gives European suppliers leverage in global supply chains (e.g., critical raw materials) compared to isolated national demand.

• Reputation & Policy Influence: Participation offers a seat at EU-level boards (Governing Board, SRIA Task Forces), allowing organisations to influence future regulatory and funding priorities beyond domestic reach.

Conclusion: Engaging in the Clean Energy Transition Co-Funded Partnership offers unparalleled EU-wide advantages—market scale, cross-border collaboration, policy alignment, and funding leverage—that cannot be matched by purely national programmes. These benefits collectively de-risk innovation, accelerate commercial deployment, and maximise societal impact across the Union.