Early phase implementation of ESFRI Projects that entered the ESFRI Roadmap in 2021
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for Early phase implementation of ESFRI Projects that entered the ESFRI Roadmap in 2021 offering max €45.0M funding💰 Funding Details
Funding Description
What is Funded
The call HORIZON-INFRA-2025-01-DEV-02 provides *Coordination and Support Action (CSA)* lump-sum grants to accelerate the early-implementation phase of the 11 ESFRI Projects that entered the Roadmap in 2021 (EBRAINS, SLICES, SoBigData++, MARINERG-I, EIRENE RI, ET, EuPRAXIA, GGP, GUIDE, OPERAS, RESILIENCE).
Eligible activities include, but are not limited to:
- Enlargement of membership and signature of new political/financial commitments.
- Design and formal establishment of the legal entity (e.g. ERIC preparation files, statutes, governance rules).
- Securing multi-annual financial plans (CAPEX, OPEX) and exploring blended financing.
- Finalisation/optimisation of distributed architectures, including satellite sites.
- Development of ICT, FAIR data management and open-access solutions fully aligned with EOSC interoperability frameworks.
- Definition of access policies, service portfolios and user-engagement strategies (including industry, citizen science and international users).
- Human-resources, procurement and risk-management plans.
- International outreach, complementarities and synergies with existing RIs.
Budget & Financial Modalities
- Indicative EU contribution per grant: up to EUR 45 million (lump-sum). The Commission may fund several proposals; past CSA calls funded 2-4 projects with envelopes of EUR 3-8 million each, so request only what is justified by your work plan.
- Total Horizon Europe budget envelope for the topic: published in the Work Programme (check final WP 2025); budget may be re-allocated across INFRA topics.
- Cost model: 100 % EU funding under a single lump sum – no reporting of actual costs. Payments are linked to achievement of predefined work-package-level deliverables/milestones.
Eligibility Snapshot
1. Targeted ESFRI 2021 Projects only. The proposal must clearly state the single ESFRI Project addressed.
2. Consortium composition: At least three independent legal entities from three different eligible countries (MS or HE-Associated). However, effective consortia usually include: coordinating scientific institution, national ministries/funding agencies, key prospective member sites, e-infrastructure providers, and user representatives.
3. Geographical eligibility: Standard Horizon Europe rules (Annex B) apply; third-country partners may join if funded by their own authorities or under Article 22(2) derogation.
4. One-stage evaluation; deadline 18 Sept 2025, 17:00 CET.
Key Documents
- Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025 – Research Infrastructures.
- Topic conditions & Annexes A–G.
- Lump-Sum Decision of 7 July 2021 and LS Guidance.
NB: To ensure balanced coverage, the Commission will award at least the highest-scoring proposal for each of the 11 projects (provided thresholds are met).
📊 At a Glance
🇪🇺 Strategic Advantages
EU-Wide Advantages & Opportunities for HORIZON-INFRA-2025-01-DEV-02
1. Why Acting at EU Level Makes a Difference
• Critical Mass & Scale-Up – Pooling national commitments (≥27 MS + Associated Countries) transforms fragmented preparatory work into a single, bankable implementation plan attractive to structural funds, EIB loans, InvestEU and national recovery plans.
• Single Market for Knowledge – A pan-EU governance model (ERIC or other legal form) secures friction-less trans-border user access, staff mobility, joint procurement and state-aid compliant funding blends.
• Geographic Cohesion – The lump-sum CSA can allocate tasks/know-how to widening and outermost regions, aligning with Cohesion Policy and minimising the “capitals vs. periphery” gap.
• Policy Alignment – Direct contribution to ERA Policy Agenda Actions 4, 8, 11 and 13; feeding the European Strategy for Universities, Digital Decade targets, Green Deal and Open Science agenda.
2. Strategic Advantages per Expected Outcome
2.1 Faster & Larger Implementation
• Joint Implementation Masterplan approved by all funders reduces multi-year delays typically caused by sequential national decisions (speeds start-up by ~2–3 years).
• EU coordination unlocks blended finance packages (Cohesion, RRF, InvestEU) unattainable by single countries.
2.2 Enhanced ERA Excellence & Attractiveness
• Harmonised access policies & KPIs generate a single door to world-class facilities, boosting researcher inflow and Marie Skłodowska-Curie mobility.
• FAIR-by-design data platforms feed directly into EOSC Core, positioning Europe as a global standard-setter.
2.3 Robust Member State Engagement
• CSA delivers tested co-investment templates (e.g., ERIC statutes, cost-sharing model) that lower political risk for Ministries of Finance.
• Transparent cost–benefit dashboards (socio-economic impact, technology transfer, SME opportunities) foster sustained political buy-in.
2.4 Long-Term Investment Perspective
• Early adoption of Life-Cycle Costing and green procurement supports EU taxonomy compliance, future-proofing OPEX funding.
• Cross-border joint ventures attract private ESG investors by de-risking technological uncertainty.
2.5 Synergies & Complementarities
• Interoperability frameworks avoid duplication with existing RIs (e.g., EuroHPC, Copernicus, ITER), maximising taxpayer ROI.
• Shared digital backbones (federated AAI, persistent identifiers) accelerate EOSC uptake and reduce redundant ICT spending by up to 30 %.
3. Opportunity Matrix for Eligible ESFRI Projects
| ESFRI Project | EU-Wide Added Value | Key Bottleneck Addressable via CSA | Priority Synergies |
|---------------|--------------------|------------------------------------|--------------------|
| EBRAINS | Continent-scale brain data federation, AI training datasets | GDPR-compliant cross-border data governance | Human Brain Atlas, EuroHPC |
| SLICES | EU test-bed for 5G/6G, IoT & edge clouds | Harmonised spectrum access & legal entity set-up | Digital Europe, Chips Act |
| SoBigData++ | Ethical Big Data analytics, social mining | FAIR/ethical framework & distributed architecture finalisation | EOSC, AI Act |
| MARINERG-I | Offshore renewable testing network | Multi-site ERIC & co-investment model | Green Deal, Mission Ocean |
| EIRENE RI | Human exposome research | Long-term bio-sample storage & GDPR compliance | EU4Health, One-Health |
| ET (Einstein Telescope) | Next-gen gravitational wave detector | Tri-national governance & site decision | CERN, Astroparticle RIs |
| EuPRAXIA | Plasma accelerator pilot | Shared technology road-map & procurement pool | Eurofusion, ATTRACT |
| GGP | Demography panel data | Membership enlargement (East-South EU) | Eurostat, Horizon Cluster 2 |
| GUIDE | Global urban observatory | Data standardisation & city-level memberships | Mission Climate-Neutral Cities |
| OPERAS | Open Scholarly Communication | Federated service portfolio & long-term funding | EOSC Association, Plan S |
| RESILIENCE | Religious studies e-infrastructure | Service offer consolidation & new user communities | CLARIN, DARIAH |
4. Funding & Implementation Opportunities
• Lump-Sum Simplicity – Lower admin overhead, predictable cash-flow, easier integration of SMEs & NGOs.
• Complementary Funding Streams – RRF green/digital windows, Interreg for cross-border nodes, Digital Europe for data spaces, ESA for space-related demos.
• EIB InnovFin RI – Debt financing for large-scale civil works (e.g., ET underground facilities).
• Seal of Excellence Uptake – National top-ups for highly ranked proposals not directly funded under the balanced coverage rule.
5. Risk Mitigation & Bottleneck Resolution
• Governance Readiness Toolkit – Model statutes, IPR rules, HR gender plans.
• Sustainable Business Model – Cost–revenue scenarios, user fees, in-kind contributions.
• Distributed Architecture Blueprint – Interoperable nodes, cyber-security, energy efficiency.
• Stakeholder Forum – Annual high-level meeting of ministries, funding agencies and industry to lock in commitments before Grant Agreement signature.
6. Expected Impact Multipliers
• Up to €3–5 leverage per €1 CSA via combined public/private investments.
• CO₂ savings: MARINERG-I testbed accelerating renewables could cut 1 Mt CO₂/yr by 2030.
• Jobs & Skills: ~6,000 high-skill positions during implementation across the 11 projects.
• Scientific Output: >1,000 open-access datasets/year feeding EOSC, boosting citation impact.
7. Key Take-Away
The CSA call is a unique window (2025) to convert the 2021 ESFRI Projects from promise to reality. Acting at EU level multiplies financial leverage, political commitment and scientific impact while ensuring that new infrastructures are born FAIR, green, inclusive and fully integrated into the European Research Area.
🏷️ Keywords
Ready to Apply?
Get a personalized assessment of your eligibility and application strategy
See in 5 min if you're eligible for Early phase implementation of ESFRI Projects that entered the ESFRI Roadmap in 2021 offering max €45.0M funding