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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

Core objective: To advance scientific understanding of marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) techniques, particularly Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE), and their impacts, risks, and effectiveness, while informing evidence-based decision-making for climate and ocean sustainability.
Target recipient type and size: Research organizations, universities, international organizations, and entities with strong scientific and technical capacity. Size is not explicitly limited, but projects are substantial, suggesting medium to large research entities or consortia.
SECTOR-SPECIFIC
Geographic scope: International cooperation is essential, with a focus on European leadership and contribution to global scientific assessments. Proposals should contribute to goals of the Paris Agreement, Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and High Seas Treaty (BBNJ).
Key filtering criteria: Projects must directly address marine carbon dioxide removal, either through Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE) research (Option A) or through monitoring global oceans for mCDR (Option B).
Grant frequency and program context: Part of the Horizon Europe Framework Programme (2021-2027), specifically under Cluster 6 'Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment', Destination 'Land, ocean and water for climate action'. This specific call is for 2025.

Financial Structure

Funding Amounts:
- Total budget for this topic: 12000000 EUR.
- Expected number of grants: 2.
- Grant amount per project: 6000000 EUR.
Currency: EUR
Support Type: The grant will take the form of a lump sum contribution.
Eligible Costs (covered by the lump sum):
- Personnel costs (employees, natural persons under direct contract, seconded persons, SME owners, natural person beneficiaries).
- Subcontracting costs.
- Purchase costs (travel, subsistence, equipment (depreciation or full capitalised), other goods, works, services).
- Other cost categories (financial support to third parties (if any), internally invoiced goods/services, transnational access to research infrastructure, virtual access to research infrastructure, PCP/PPI procurement, Euratom Cofund staff mobility, ERC additional funding).
Ineligible Costs: Costs that would be ineligible under standard Horizon Europe rules.
Indirect Costs: A flat rate of 25% is applied to eligible direct costs when calculating the lump sum contribution.
Co-financing: The total estimated costs of the action must be greater than the estimated Union contributions, ensuring the co-financing principle is met.
Payment Schedule: Lump sum contributions are paid per work package upon proper implementation of the work package activities as per the grant agreement. Pre-financing follows standard Horizon Europe rules.
Financial Guarantees: 5-8% of the total lump sum is retained as a contribution to the Mutual Insurance Mechanism.
Financial Reporting: There is no obligation to report actual costs; the focus is on technical implementation and fulfillment of work package conditions for payment.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type

Eligible: All international organizations are exceptionally eligible for funding. This generally includes universities, research institutions, public bodies, and private companies (SMEs and large enterprises) engaged in research and innovation.
Consortium: A strong collaboration mechanism is required, implying that applications must be submitted by consortia of multiple entities.

Geographic Location

Eligible Countries: Defined in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. Given the focus on international cooperation and global assessments, entities from EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries are eligible, and international organizations are exceptionally eligible for funding, meaning participation from around the globe is encouraged.

Technical Expertise and Capacity

Applicants must demonstrate capability for advanced modelling, monitoring, and simulation (including AI).
Expertise in ocean biogeochemistry, marine ecosystems, and relevant scientific disciplines is essential.
Capacity to leverage and contribute to existing observing platforms (e.g., Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service, GLODAP, SOCAT, GOOS, OBIS, MBON of GEOBON, ICOS, GCOS, other International Ocean Observing Initiatives).
Strong inter- and multidisciplinary approach, including Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) perspectives and gender considerations.

Other Requirements

Financial and operational capacity: Described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Compliance with the Guide to Best Practices in Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement Research (for Option A) is required.
Projects using satellite-based Earth observation, positioning, navigation, or related timing data and services must use Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS.

Application Process

Application Timeline

Call opening date: 2025-05-06
Submission deadline: 2025-09-16 00:00:00+0000
Submission process: Single-stage submission.
Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement: Described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes (not provided in this document).

Application Procedure

Proposals are submitted via the Funding & Tenders Portal Submission System.
Authentication is required (e.g., EU Login, third-party sign-in, eID).

Required Documentation and Materials

Application form templates specific to the call, available in the Submission System (Standard application form for HE RIA, IA).
Detailed budget table (HE LS - Lump Sum) to propose the amount of the lump sum contribution, showing breakdown per work package, per beneficiary, and affiliated entity.
Proposals must include a declaration by beneficiaries that they have used their own accounting practices for budget preparation.

Evaluation Process

Proposals are evaluated according to standard Horizon Europe procedures by external independent experts.
Experts assess the quality (excellence, impact, implementation) and verify the budget estimate against benchmarks.
Financial expertise will assess whether proposed resources and lump sum shares are sufficient for activities and expected outputs.

Support and Resources

Online Manual: Guide for procedures from proposal submission to grant management.
Horizon Europe Programme Guide: Detailed guidance on structure, budget, and political priorities.
Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ.
Research Enquiry Service.
National Contact Points (NCPs): Guidance and assistance on participation.
Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): Advice for businesses, especially SMEs.
IT Helpdesk for technical issues.
European IPR Helpdesk for intellectual property.
CEN-CENELEC and ETSI Research Helpdesks for standardisation.
European Charter for Researchers and Code of Conduct.
Partner Search: Available to find partner organizations.

Evaluation Criteria

Award Criteria (as per Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes)

Quality of the proposal: Excellence of research, methodology, and scientific soundness.
Impact: Potential contribution to expected outcomes (scientific understanding, modelling, decision-making, climate neutrality, ocean sustainability, greenhouse gas reduction).
Quality and efficiency of implementation: Management, resources, and work plan.

Scoring and Thresholds

Proposals must attain all thresholds set for the evaluation criteria.
Grants will be awarded not only by ranking but also to ensure a balanced portfolio, specifically by selecting the highest-ranked proposals within each of the two options (A and B) outlined in the scope, provided they meet all thresholds.

Expected Outcomes and Deliverables

Advanced knowledge on scientific, environmental, legal, socio-political, and governance aspects for Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE).
Improved modelling, monitoring, and simulation capabilities for marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR), including Earth System Models (ESMs) and Carbon Dioxide Removal Model Intercomparison Project (CDRMIP).
Evidence-based European and global decision-making on mCDR.
Significant contribution to global scientific assessments.
Contribution to better understood ocean health, reduced greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture/forestry/land-use sectors, and a water resilient society.

Project Specific Evaluation Considerations

Option A (Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement - OAE): Proposals will be evaluated on how they elucidate unknowns regarding efficacy, feasibility, scalability, duration of effects, energy return, environmental/ecological risks, co-benefits, disbenefits, and cost-effectiveness. Use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology, consideration of SDGs (3, 6, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17), and assessment of desirability, ethical, social, political, and governance aspects from an international perspective. Assessment of impacts on ocean biogeochemistry, marine ecosystems, and human well-being.
Option B (Monitoring for mCDR): Proposals will be evaluated on their ability to establish building blocks for realistic, long-term, rigorous, standardized monitoring of potential mCDR and sequestration, including operational system requirements, detection, attribution, and determination. Development of data-based ocean modelling and simulation capabilities. Monitoring for effectiveness, durability of carbon sequestration, and environmental impacts.
General for both options: Strong collaboration mechanism, synergies with relevant activities and initiatives, building on existing observing platforms, strengthening current capacities, integration of SSH perspectives and gender, justice perspective (desirability/benefits for whom, intergenerational aspects), international cooperation. Linkage with UN Decade of Ocean Science, ongoing Horizon projects, Copernicus marine service, GOOS, OBIS, MBON of GEOBON, ICOS, GCOS. Contribution to European Digital Twin of the Ocean and Destination Earth initiative. Effective coordination with ESA and European Commission on Earth System Science. Leverage data from EOSC, Copernicus, relevant data spaces.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory Compliance

Projects must comply with the London Protocol and Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Decision X/33 regarding marine geoengineering activities, particularly that no climate-related geoengineering activities that may affect biodiversity should take place until there is an adequate scientific basis, and small-scale scientific research is allowed under controlled settings.
If satellite-based Earth observation, positioning, navigation, or related timing data/services are used, beneficiaries must use Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS.

Ethical Standards

Research must be 'legitimate, responsible, multi and trans-disciplinary, transparent, and inclusive'.
'Principled ocean CDR research must be precautionary, inclusive, and well-planned, conducted with a view to ensure these technologies are effective, without harming the environment and people.'
Inclusion of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) perspectives and gender aspects.
Research on desirability, benefits, and disbenefits should incorporate a comprehensive justice perspective, including intergenerational aspects.

Data and Intellectual Property

In-situ data collected must follow INSPIRE principles and be available through open access repositories supported by the European Commission (e.g., Copernicus, EMODnet).
Projects should leverage data and services from European Research Infrastructures federated under the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) and Copernicus, as well as relevant data spaces.
Intellectual property policies are covered by the Model Grant Agreement and Annotated Model Grant Agreement.

Technical and Research Guidelines

Research for Option A (OAE) must be grounded in the Guide to Best Practices in Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement Research.
Strong linkage required with activities under the UN Decade of Ocean Science, ongoing Horizon projects, Copernicus marine service (CMEMS), GOOS, OBIS, MBON of GEOBON, ICOS, GCOS, and other relevant international Ocean Observing Initiatives.
Synergies with Horizon Europe Missions (Adaptation to climate change, Restore our Ocean and Waters, A Soil Deal for Europe) and European partnerships (Sustainable Blue Economy, Agroecology, Agriculture of Data, PRIMA), and Destination Earth initiatives are encouraged.
Digital technologies (AI, robotics, 5G, cloud computing, Earth Observation) should be exploited.

Risk Management

The approach to mCDR research must be precautionary, emphasizing careful evaluation of efficacy, effectiveness, scalability, duration, risks (environmental, ecological), and co-benefits/disbenefits.

Unique Strategic Considerations

Focus on integrated climate stabilization and biosphere stewardship for the resilience of the entire Earth system.
Projects will support the implementation of the European Ocean Pact, European Climate Law, amended LULUCF Regulation, amended Effort Sharing Regulation, EU 2040 climate target, Union certification framework for carbon removals, and EU strategy on adaptation to climate change.
Strengthen the climate-ocean-cryosphere-polar science nexus.
The topic is part of a coordination initiative between ESA and the European Commission on Earth System Science.

Grant Details