SMARTSPEND releases a report on public and private funding instruments to support energy technology research & innovation

On the 26th of May 2021, Marie Latour, the Head of the Brussels office, presented an updated Mapping Report on Funding Instruments for Energy Innovation at the “European Conference on Risk Access Finance for the Clean Tech Sector” by SMARTSPEND. The report was prepared by ZABALA Innovation experts.

The updated report is a broad guide of the most relevant and available instruments to support clean energy research and serves as a reference document on funding for clean energy project developers, administrators, policymakers and energy stakeholders. The newly-released version updates a September 2020 report on public and private funding support for energy technology research and innovation.

Overview of the funding instruments

The report is a guide providing an overview and synthetic information on Clean energy Public and Private funding instruments available for clean energy solutions, including:

• European funding instruments – 10 various instruments are covered including Horizon Europe, Interreg, CEF Energy, Interreg, InvestEU, LIFE, etc.
• National funding instruments – 8 countries including France, Spain and Italy are covered
• Regional funding instruments – 10 regions including Basque country, PACA and Trento are covered
• Private funding instruments – Over 100 private funds specifically active in clean energy are included

Moreover, the report evaluates new EU strategies such as the European Green Deal, the available final and draft Recovery and Resilience Facility Plans from 24 EU Member States, and the energy priorities they have included in their national RRF Plans. Each financial instrument is concisely summarised to include background details as well as information regarding budgets, requirements, proposals, evaluation and project execution.

Funding needs

The findings from the SMARTSPEND report are particularly interesting for industry members to assist with their funding needs, such as in the financing of first-of-a-kind, commercial-scale demonstration projects in the field of energy (FOAK projects). In doing so, the SMARTSPEND report should help coordinate industrial participation in the SET Plan, the European Commission’s Strategic Energy Technology Plan. In particular, the report contributes to the involvement of the industry-driven associations and initiatives such as the European Technology and Innovation Platforms (ETIPs), the European Joint Technology Initiatives or other relevant public-private partnerships, and importantly the industrial actors.

ACCESS THE REPORT ON THIS LINK.

SMARTSPEND in bullet points

• 3-year-project (2018-2021) developed by 11 expert partners from all over Europe
• Goal: more efficient and effective use of the national and European funding for Research, Development & Innovation in the energy sector
• Objectives:
  to foster efficiency in the allocation of public & private funding
  to better inform stakeholders through the preparation and dissemination of six reports, and dissemination based on engagement with policymakers
• All SMARTSPEND’s reports and further information are available at www.smartspend.eu.
• Stay informed about SMARTSPEND latest news by following the hashtag #SMARTSPEND_EU on Twitter and LinkedIn and by subscribing to the project newsletter via this link.