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On 30th of March 2023, the European Commission launched the Innovation Fund third small-scale call for projects, with a total budget of EUR 100 million. The Innovation Fund is an EU instrument supporting and promoting the demonstration of innovative low-carbon technologies by supporting projects aimed at the commercial deployment of such technologies, with the aim of bringing industrial solutions to market to decarbonise Europe and supporting its transition towards climate neutrality.

The following activities can be funded under this topic:

• activities supporting innovation in low-carbon technologies and processes in sectors listed in Annex I to the EU ETS Directive 2003/87, including environmentally safe carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) that contributes substantially to mitigating climate change, as well as products substituting carbon-intensive ones produced in sectors listed in Annex I to the EU ETS Directive;
• activities that help stimulate the construction and operation of projects aiming at the environmentally safe capture and geological storage of CO2 (CCS)
• activities contributing to stimulate the construction and operation of innovative renewable energy and energy storage technologies.

Carbon capture and utilisation can be funded if the capture of CO2 occurs within one of the activities listed in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive, or if the utilisation of CO2 results in products substituting carbon-intensive ones from the sectors listed in Annex I to the EU ETS Directive, even if carbon is captured outside the activities of Annex I.

Persons with legal personality, private or public, established in any country in the world are eligible to submit a project proposal.

Projects must have a duration of at least 3 years and must be carried out in the territory of the EU, Norway or Iceland, or in Northern Ireland, provided that the project concerns the generation, transmission, distribution or supply of electricity.

Additionally, on 20 April the European Commission organizes the online Info Day, to provide more information about new call, and get questions answered using sli.do.

All the official documents are available on the Portal for Funding and Tenders

Written by: Margherita Genua