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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

This grant aims to accelerate the development and market entry of new battery systems by reducing testing costs and time. It focuses on multi-physical and virtual testing methods to improve battery aging, reliability, and safety evaluation. - Explicit identification of target recipient type and size: Organizations involved in research and innovation, typically consortia. No specific size restrictions mentioned, but SMEs have historically found lump sum funding positive. - MUST state if grant is 'SECTOR-SPECIFIC' or 'SECTOR-AGNOSTIC': SECTOR-SPECIFIC - Geographic scope and any location requirements: EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. - Key filtering criteria for initial grant screening: Projects must focus on advanced testing of battery systems, particularly for Electric Vehicles (EVs), with potential applicability to other electro-mobility and stationary applications. - Grant frequency and program context: This is part of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025, specifically under Cluster 5 (Climate, Energy and Mobility), and is expected to be a recurring part of the Batt4EU Partnership.

Financial Structure

Funding Type: This grant provides funding in the form of a lump sum contribution.
Budget Range: The total budget allocated for this topic is EUR 15,000,000.
Individual Grant Amounts: Two grants are expected, each with a contribution of EUR 7,500,000.
Eligible Costs: The lump sum covers estimated direct and indirect costs, including personnel costs, subcontracting costs, purchase costs (travel, equipment, goods, services), and other specific costs (e.g., financial support to third parties, access to research infrastructure).
Ineligible Costs: Costs that are ineligible under standard Horizon Europe rules are excluded from the lump sum calculation.
Indirect Costs: A 25% flat rate for indirect costs is included in the lump sum calculation, applied to eligible direct cost categories.
Matching Fund/Co-financing Requirements: The total estimated costs of the action must be greater than the estimated EU contribution, adhering to the co-financing principle. The reimbursement rate (typically 70% for Innovation Actions for for-profit entities, 100% for non-profit entities) is factored into the lump sum calculation.
Payment Schedule: Payments are based on the successful implementation and completion of predefined work packages. The lump sum contribution for a work package is paid if its conditions are met during a reporting period.
Financial Reporting: Beneficiaries are not required to report actual costs incurred, significantly simplifying administrative burden.
Audit Requirements: Financial ex-post audits are minimized. Checks, reviews, and audits will focus primarily on the technical implementation of the action and the fulfillment of work package conditions, as well as other grant agreement aspects like ethics, dissemination, and IP.
Mutual Insurance Mechanism: Between 5% and 8% of the total lump sum is retained as a contribution to the Mutual Insurance Mechanism.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type and Structure

Eligible organization types: Any legal entity can apply. This includes research organizations, universities, public bodies, and private companies.
Consortium requirements: A consortium is required. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium selected for funding.

Geographic and Regulatory Requirements

Eligible countries: Organizations must be from EU Member States or countries associated with Horizon Europe (as defined in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes).
Specific restrictions: Subject to restrictions for the protection of European communication networks.

Financial and Operational Capacity

Requirements: Financial and operational capacity are assessed as described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Technical Expertise

Not explicitly defined as a separate criterion, but implicit in the project scope requiring advanced research and innovation in battery testing and modeling.

Application Process

Application Process Timeline

Planned Opening Date: The submission system is planned to open on 2025-09-16.
Application Deadline: The deadline for submitting proposals is 2026-01-20.
Submission Model: Single-stage submission process.
Evaluation and Award Timeline: Indicative timeline described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Required Documentation and Materials

Application Form: Use the standard application form specific to this call (HE RIA, IA), available in the Submission System.
Detailed Budget Table: A detailed budget table (HE LS - Lump Sum) is required to propose the lump sum amount, showing breakdown per work package and per beneficiary.

Submission Format and Platform

Submission System: Applications must be submitted through the official Funding & Tenders Portal Submission System.

Evaluation Process

Review Process: Proposals are evaluated according to standard Horizon Europe procedures by external independent experts.
Selection Criteria: Based on award criteria including excellence, expected impact, and quality/efficiency of implementation.

Application Assistance and Support

General Guidance: Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ.
Research & Program Specifics: Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs) in EU and Associated Countries.
Business Support: Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) for advice, particularly for SMEs.
Technical IT Support: Funding & Tenders Portal IT Helpdesk for technical issues.
Intellectual Property: European IPR Helpdesk for IP-related questions.
Standardization: CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk for advice on standardization aspects.
Partner Search: Availability of a partner search tool to find collaborating organizations.

Evaluation Criteria

Award Criteria

Excellence: Quality of the proposed research and innovation activities.
Expected Impact: Contribution to outcomes such as shortened battery development time, increased reliability/safety, acceleration of verification/validation, and standardized testing approaches.
Quality and Efficiency of Implementation: Soundness of the work plan and resources allocated.

Specific Project Focus

EV Batteries: Proposals are primarily expected to address Electric Vehicle (EV) batteries.
Applicability: Encouraged to develop techniques applicable to other electro-mobility and stationary applications (including second life).
Research Activities: Must include understanding multi-physical operational loads, failure modes, aging, and misuse on battery performance; deriving advanced operating profiles; developing novel X-in-the-Loop (XiL) test environments; combining physics-based with data-driven test strategies; developing simplified test strategies.
Safety & Standards: Advanced response strategies for damaged/aged batteries and contribution to the European safety classification system are expected.
Advanced Methodologies: Encouragement for virtual methods for full system validation, advanced measurement/diagnostic methods, and application of AI/generative AI for experimental design and testing strategies.

Exploitation and Dissemination

Exploitation Plan: For products, processes, or services, the plan must include strategies for scalability, commercialization, and deployment, indicating possible funding sources (e.g., Innovation Fund).

Financial Evaluation (for Lump Sum)

Budget Estimate: Experts will assess the quality and appropriateness of the proposed lump sum budget for each work package, checking against relevant benchmarks and ensuring it aligns with described activities.
Accounting Practices: Beneficiaries must declare that they followed their own accounting practices for budget preparation.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory Compliance

General Conditions: Adherence to general conditions for Horizon Europe, including admissibility, eligibility, financial and operational capacity, and exclusion criteria.
Legal Framework: Compliance with Regulation (EU) 2021/695 (Horizon Europe) and relevant EU financial regulations.

Intellectual Property (IP)

Policies: Management of intellectual property is subject to policies outlined in the grant agreement.

Risk Management and Security

Verification: Compliance with conditions for using lump sum contributions will be verified during grant preparation, implementation, and afterwards (technical checks, reviews, audits).
Focus of Controls: Checks will primarily focus on the technical implementation of the action and the fulfillment of work package conditions, rather than financial records.
Protection of European Communication Networks: Projects are subject to restrictions for the protection of European communication networks.

Collaboration and Synergies

Inter-Project Cooperation: Proposals are expected to establish contact and exploit complementarities with specific related Horizon Europe topics (HORIZON-CL5-2025-04-D5-03 on 'Safe post-crash management of road Light Duty Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs)' and HORIZON-CL5-2023-D2-02-03 on 'Creating a digital passport to track battery materials').
Coordination and Support Action: Projects are expected to collaborate and contribute to the activities of the Coordination and Support Action defined under topic HORIZON-CL5-2025-D2-02-06.

Sourcing and Supply Chain

European Preference: Projects are expected to use materials, products, and equipment produced in EU Member States and countries associated with Horizon Europe, unless a valid alternative cannot be demonstrated. Procurement strategies should be described in the proposal.

Reporting and Partnership Alignment

Batt4EU Partnership: Projects must report on their results to the European Partnership on Batteries (Batt4EU) to support the monitoring of its Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Grant Details