Grants8 logo Grants8
Login Create account

Grant Details

Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

This grant aims to drive the European Green Deal by developing and testing Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) methodologies for various product groups. - The core objective is to improve knowledge, create tools, and reduce the environmental impact of products across their lifecycle. - Target recipients are organizations capable of conducting research and innovation actions (RIAs), including industry, public procurers, SMEs, and NGOs. - This is a SECTOR-SPECIFIC grant, focusing on circular economy and bioeconomy sectors. - Geographic scope is primarily the EU and Associated Countries, with international cooperation encouraged. - Key filtering criteria include a focus on environmental impact reduction, PEF methodology, and specific product groups (textiles, metals, plastics, detergents, chemicals, ICT). - This grant is part of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025, suggesting it is a recurring opportunity within the broader program context.

Financial Structure

  • This grant uses a lump sum funding model.
  • The total budget for this topic (HORIZON-CL6-2025-01-CIRCBIO-03) is 8000000.0 EUR.
  • The expected number of grants is 2.
  • Each grant has a minimum contribution of 4000000.0 EUR.
  • Each grant has a maximum contribution of 4000000.0 EUR.
  • Eligible costs are based on estimated direct and indirect project costs, including personnel, subcontracting, purchase costs (travel, equipment, goods, services), and other specified cost categories.
  • Ineligible costs are those explicitly excluded under Horizon Europe rules.
  • Indirect costs are calculated using a 25% flat rate on direct costs that qualify for indirect cost calculation.
  • Payments are tied to the proper implementation of work packages as defined in the grant agreement; payments do not depend on costs actually incurred.
  • The final lump sum contribution will be the maximum grant amount, calculated by applying the reimbursement rate (typically 100% for RIA) to the total estimated eligible costs.
  • The EU contribution may cover partially the total costs of the actions; proposals must show that total estimated costs are greater than the estimated Union contributions (co-financing principle).
  • 25% of the lump sum is retained as a contribution to the Mutual Insurance Mechanism.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type
  • Eligible for Research and Innovation Actions (RIA).
  • Open to a wide range of legal entities, including industry, public procurers, SMEs, and NGOs.
  • Consortia are expected, bringing together diverse expert groups and stakeholders from across value chains.
Geographic Location
  • Participants from EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries are eligible for funding.
  • A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries may also make funding available for their participants; consult the Horizon Europe Programme Guide for details.
Specific Qualifications
  • Must adhere to the most recent EU rules and data established for Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) methods.
  • Expertise in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)/PEF methodologies is required.
  • Capacity to develop sector-specific methods, tools, and guidance documents.
  • Ability to perform in-depth full life cycle assessment studies, addressing end-of-life aspects.
  • Projects should address the knowledge gap in capacity and skills related to PEF-based assessments, especially for SMEs.
Exclusion Criteria
  • Organizations not complying with general Horizon Europe conditions and financial/operational capacity requirements (as per Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes) will be excluded.

Application Process

Application Procedure
  • This call operates on a single-stage submission procedure.
  • The submission session became available on 2025-05-06.
  • Proposals must be submitted via the electronic submission service on the Funding & Tenders Portal.
  • The application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System.
  • Applicants will need to confirm their choice of action type and model grant agreement in the submission system.
Application Deadlines
  • The submission deadline is 2025-09-17 00:00:00+0000.
Required Documentation and Materials
  • Proposal page limit and layout as described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes, and Part B of the Application Form.
  • Standard application form (HE RIA, IA).
  • Detailed budget table (HE LS) for lump sum grants.
  • Declaration by beneficiaries confirming the use of their own accounting practices for budget estimation.
Evaluation and Selection
  • Proposals will be evaluated by external independent experts based on excellence, expected impact, and quality/efficiency of implementation.
  • Experts with financial expertise will check the budget estimate against benchmarks and assess the resources proposed.
  • The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Support and Guidance
  • Online Manual: Provides guidance on procedures from proposal submission to grant management.
  • Horizon Europe Programme Guide: Detailed guidance on the structure, budget, and political priorities of Horizon Europe.
  • Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ: Answers to common queries.
  • Research Enquiry Service: For general questions about European research.
  • National Contact Points (NCPs): Guidance and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe.
  • Enterprise Europe Network: Advice for businesses, especially SMEs, on EU research funding.
  • IT Helpdesk: For technical issues with the Funding & Tenders Portal.
  • European IPR Helpdesk: Assistance with intellectual property issues.
  • CEN-CENELEC and ETSI Research Helpdesks: Advice on standardisation in project proposals.
  • Partner Search: Tools available on the portal to find partner organizations.

Evaluation Criteria

Standard Horizon Europe Evaluation Criteria
  • Excellence: Quality of the research, innovation, and proposed methodologies. This includes the soundness of the PEF methodology, depth of life cycle assessment studies, and development of appropriate datasets and tools.
  • Expected Impact: Potential for the project to contribute to the European Green Deal, circular economy action plan (CEAP), and Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). This involves demonstrating how the project will:
    • Improve stakeholder knowledge on circular economy and environmental pollution.
    • Develop sector-specific PEF methods, data, tools, and guidance.
    • Lead to a significant reduction of environmental impacts for targeted products.
    • Engage stakeholders (industry, public procurers, SMEs, NGOs) to enhance the consistency and use of sustainability metrics.
    • Advance innovative business and governance models for sustainable product design, durability, and circularity.
    • Foster large-scale diffusion of social and technological innovation within circular and bioeconomy sectors.
  • Quality and Efficiency of the Implementation: Soundness of the work plan, proposed resources, and management structures. This includes:
    • Clarity of objectives and appropriateness of the proposed methodology.
    • Quality and effectiveness of the work plan, including milestones and deliverables.
    • Appropriateness of the allocation of tasks and resources to participants.
    • Complementarity of the participants within the consortium, bringing together relevant expert groups and stakeholders.
    • Quality of the proposed management, including risk management.
    • Plans for data management, ensuring open access and adherence to FAIR principles.
Specific Scoring Factors
  • Contribution to the implementation of the Circular Economy Action Plan and Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR).
  • Clear demonstration of how the project will address environmental impacts at a territorial level and involve civil society.
  • Development of guidance, training, and dissemination strategies to support wider use of PEF in selected sectors, particularly addressing capacity and skill gaps for SMEs.
  • Proposals focusing on at least one of the specified product groups: home/interior textiles; final products made of metals, or plastics; detergents; lubricants, paints and varnishes; polymers; selected groups of other chemicals; ICT products.
  • Proposals should target a sufficiently broad and granular scope within the chosen product groups.
  • Synergy and complementarity with relevant EU policies and initiatives (e.g., Cluster 4 & 5, CBE Joint Undertaking, EU mission 'Restore our Ocean and Waters', Soil mission, CCRI, NEB Facility).

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory Compliance
  • Projects must contribute to the implementation of the European Green Deal, the Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP), and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR).
  • Alignment with the EU bioeconomy strategy, forest strategy for 2030, Common Agriculture Policy, industrial strategy, chemicals strategy for sustainability, European Climate Law, SME strategy, safe and sustainable by design framework, and sustainable blue economy.
  • Compliance with the upcoming working plan for Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation.
Data and Intellectual Property
  • Data produced by the project should be open access in line with FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Re-usable).
  • Checks, reviews, and audits will include the management of intellectual property.
Ethical and Social Considerations
  • Projects impacting or involving civil society should take into account the participation of disadvantaged groups based on gender and other social categories.
  • Adherence to ethical standards and research integrity as per general Horizon Europe rules.
Risk Management
  • While financial audits are minimized under the lump sum model, checks will focus on the technical implementation of the action and fulfilment of work package conditions.
  • Non-compliance with work package completion can lead to non-payment or recovery of funds.
Special Features (Lump Sum Funding)
  • Simplifies financial management by focusing on the scientific/technical performance and output rather than detailed cost reporting.
  • Reduces administrative burden for beneficiaries and the granting authority.
  • Payments are tied to the proper completion of work packages, not actual incurred costs.
Strategic Alignment and Opportunities
  • Opportunities for synergy with Cluster 4 (Digital, Industry and Space) and Cluster 5 (Climate, Energy and Mobility), as well as the 'Circular Bio-based Europe' (CBE Joint Undertaking), EU partnership for blue economy, and EU mission 'Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030'.
  • Encouraged synergies with the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative (CCRI) and the New European Bauhaus (NEB) Facility.
  • International cooperation is encouraged to maximize impacts.
  • Specific attention to SME capacity and skills development related to PEF-based assessments.

Grant Details

product environmental footprint pef circular economy bioeconomy life cycle assessment lca ecodesign ecodesign for sustainable products r espr environmental impact sustainability metrics stakeholder engagement sme support industry public procurers ngos research and innovation horizon europe lump sum textiles metals plastics detergents lubricants paints varnishes polymers chemicals ict products climate change mitigation environmental pollution biodiversity data sharing fair data open science green deal social economy gender equality carbon management sustainable products resource efficiency
Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) of policy and market-relevant product groups
48212803TOPICSen
Horizon Europe
SME NGO ENTERPRISE UNIVERSITY PUBLIC OTHER
AT BE BG HR CY CZ DK EE FI FR DE GR HU IE IT LV LT LU MT NL PL PT RO SK SI ES SE
ENVIRONMENT MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY OTHER
DEVELOPMENT
OTHER
SDG3 SDG6 SDG9 SDG10 SDG11 SDG12 SDG13 SDG14 SDG15 SDG17
FUNDING RESEARCH_DEVELOPMENT CAPACITY_BUILDING TRAINING_EDUCATION
8000000.00
4000000.00
4000000.00
EUR
100.00
Sept. 17, 2025, midnight
None