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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

This grant aims to provide advanced research infrastructure services to tackle significant challenges and support EU priorities. It specifically targets organizations that can offer trans-national and/or virtual access to their top-level, integrated research infrastructures. - Primary objective: Provision of innovative, customised, and efficient research infrastructure services to enhance problem-solving capacity and evidence-based policy-making. - Target recipients: Research infrastructures (including ESFRI Landmarks and ERICs) and other legal entities capable of providing high-quality access services. - SECTOR-SPECIFIC: This grant is highly sector-specific, focusing on four distinct areas: advanced biotechnology and biomanufacturing, novel radionuclides and medical facilities, climate change understanding and prediction, and new aviation fuels and combustion technologies. - Geographic scope: Organizations from EU Member States and Associated Countries. Select non-EU/non-Associated Countries (Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, India, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, USA) are eligible if they provide access to EU/AC researchers and offer complementary or more advanced services. - Key filtering criteria: Applicant must be a research infrastructure or related legal entity, capable of providing trans-national or virtual access to existing services within one of the four specified thematic areas. Consortium participation is required. - Grant frequency and program context: This is a recurring grant opportunity within the Horizon Europe Research Infrastructures Work Programme 2025, specifically under the 'SERV' call for service provision.

Financial Structure

Budget range: The total budget for this specific topic (HORIZON-INFRA-2025-01-SERV-02) is 20,000,000 EUR for the year 2025.
Minimum grant amount per project: 5,000,000 EUR.
Maximum grant amount per project: 5,000,000 EUR.
Expected number of grants: 4.
Currency: EUR.
Eligible costs: Eligible costs may take the form of unit costs for trans-national and virtual access to research infrastructures, as defined in the Decision authorising the use of unit costs for such actions (see Annex 2a of the Horizon Europe Model Grant Agreement).
Co-financing requirements: Not explicitly stated as a percentage, but grants cover eligible costs based on the Horizon Europe model.
Financial reporting: Will follow the general rules outlined in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Horizon Europe Model Grant Agreement.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type and Structure

Eligible organization types: Legal entities established in EU Member States, Associated Countries, and exceptionally, specified third countries. This broadly includes research infrastructures, universities, public research bodies, and potentially SMEs capable of providing relevant services.
Consortium requirement: Yes, proposals must involve a consortium. It is mandatory to include at least one ESFRI Landmark or European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC)* as a beneficiary.
Distributed ERICs: If an ERIC is distributed, a legal entity hosting its facilities, resources, or related services may participate as a beneficiary. A signed declaration from the ERIC's legal representative supporting this participation and explaining its relevance is required.
Joint Research Centre (JRC): The European Commission's Joint Research Centre may participate as a member of the consortium.

Geographic and Legal Requirements

Eligible countries: Organisations from EU Member States and Associated Countries are eligible for funding.
Exceptional eligibility for third countries: Legal entities established in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, India, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, and USA are exceptionally eligible for funding IF they provide access to their research infrastructures to researchers from EU Member States and Associated Countries AND offer complementary or more advanced services than those available in EU/AC.
EU Charter for Access to Research Infrastructures: Proposals should adhere to the guidelines and principles of the European Charter for Access to Research Infrastructures.

Project Specifics

Access provision: Access provision activities must be included in the proposal. The main goal is access provision to existing services. While improvement and optimisation of services and short-term R&D for new services are supported, longer-term R&D for new instrumentation, tools, methods, or advanced digital solutions is not supported.
Scope: Proposals must address one of the four specified thematic areas (advanced biotechnology/biomanufacturing, novel radionuclides/facilities, climate change, new aviation fuels/combustion technologies) and explicitly state which area they address.
Research infrastructure definition: A research infrastructure is considered 'of European interest' if it can attract users from EU or associated countries other than its location. This includes ESFRI and ERIC infrastructures.
Installation definition: An 'installation' refers to a part or service of a research infrastructure that can be used independently. A research infrastructure can consist of one or more installations.

ESFRI Landmark: Identified pan-European Research Infrastructures, listed in the ESFRI Roadmap 2021. *European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC): A specific legal framework designed to facilitate the establishment and operation of Research Infrastructures of European interest.

Application Process

Application Deadlines and Submission

Application open date: 2025-05-06.
Application deadline: 2025-09-18 00:00:00+0000.
Submission procedure: Single-stage application process.
Submission platform: Applications must be submitted via the Funding & Tenders Portal Submission System.

Required Documentation and Materials

Application form: Use the Standard application form (HE RIA, IA) available in the Submission System.
Proposal content: Proposals need to provide information on the research infrastructures providing access.
Page limit: The application has a page limit of 100 pages.
Plan for exploitation and dissemination: Applicants are not required to include a plan for exploitation and dissemination of results, as the main objective of these actions is service provision.
Supporting documentation: Where relevant, proposals should include the list of services/installations opened by research infrastructures for trans-national or virtual access and the amounts of units of access made available for users.
Consortium specific: If a distributed ERIC is involved, a declaration signed by the legal representative of the ERIC supporting the participation of a legal entity hosting ERIC facilities is required.

Support and Guidance

Application assistance: General guidance is available through the Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, FAQs, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, and European IPR Helpdesk.
Model Grant Agreement: Relevant Model Grant Agreements (MGA) and Annotated Model Grant Agreement (AGA) are available for reference.

Project Implementation Timeline and Reporting

Grant duration: Not specified for individual projects; will be defined in the Grant Agreement.
Reporting obligations: Follow general Horizon Europe reporting requirements outlined in the Work Programme General Annexes.

Evaluation Criteria

The evaluation of proposals will consider standard Horizon Europe criteria (Excellence, Impact, Quality and Efficiency of Implementation), with specific additions for the 'Excellence' criterion. Excellence

Access Activities Quality: The extent to which the proposed trans-national and/or virtual access activities will offer access to state-of-the-art infrastructures of European interest in the field, providing high-quality services, and enabling users to conduct excellent research.
Service Integration and Improvement: The extent to which the project will contribute to facilitating and integrating access procedures, improving the services provided by the infrastructures, and further developing their online services.

Other Considerations (Underlying Criteria)

Relevance to EU Priorities: Projects should align with EU objectives such as the European Green Deal, EU strategic autonomy and resilience, actions for biotechnology and biomanufacturing, the EU SAMIRA action plan, Paris Agreement, and European Climate Law.
Interdisciplinarity and Complementarity: The proposal should demonstrate a wide, inclusive, and comprehensive portfolio of complementary research infrastructure services, including data services and customised workflows, involving a necessary interdisciplinary set of research infrastructures.
Sustainability of Services: Long-term sustainability of the developed/improved services must be ensured.
Data Management and Interoperability: Where relevant, data management (and related ethics issues), interoperability, and connection of digital services to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) should be addressed.
Outreach and Engagement: Proposals should include a plan to actively advertise services to targeted research communities, notably from Widening countries, and, if applicable, to relevant industries, including SMEs.
Synergies and Coherence: Projects should exploit synergies and ensure complementarity and coherence with other EU grants supporting access provision.
Compliance with Access Provisions: Compliance with the 'Specific features for Research Infrastructures' section of the Work Programme regarding access provisions will be taken into account.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory and Ethical Compliance

European Charter for Access to Research Infrastructures: Adherence to the guidelines and principles of this Charter is required. This document sets non-regulatory principles for access policies.
Data Protection and Privacy: Data management, including related ethics issues, interoperability, and connection of digital services to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), must be addressed where relevant.
Ethical Standards: Ethics issues related to data management must be considered.
Gender Dimension: The integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content is not a mandatory requirement for this topic.

Technical and Operational Requirements

Service Provision Focus: The core goal is access provision to existing services. While some short-term R&D for service improvement is allowed, the grant will not support longer-term R&D for new instrumentation, tools, methods, or advanced digital solutions.
Interdisciplinary Research Infrastructures: Proposals must involve a wide, inclusive, and comprehensive portfolio of complementary research infrastructure services, provided by a necessary interdisciplinary set of research infrastructures of European interest.
Quality Standards: Proposals are expected to contribute to harmonisation and development of standards, and sharing of best practices.

Strategic and Collaborative Aspects

International Collaboration: Research infrastructures from third countries may be involved as beneficiaries or affiliated entities only if they offer complementary or more advanced services than those available in EU Member States and Associated Countries.
JRC Collaboration: Proposals could consider the inclusion of relevant European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) research infrastructures and expertise in their service portfolio. JRC may collaborate with successful proposals after approval.
Global Standards: Where appropriate, proposals should foster the use and deployment of (open) global standards.
Major Initiatives: Proposals should take due account of major European or international initiatives relevant to their domain (e.g., Horizon Europe Missions, Partnerships, EU SAMIRA action plan, IPCC assessments).

Unique Aspects and Challenges

Focus on Access vs. R&D: A potential challenge is clearly demonstrating that the proposed activities are primarily focused on providing access to existing services, rather than new, long-term research and development of the infrastructures themselves.
Maintaining European Leadership: The grant is designed to help maintain Europe's leading position in scientific and industrial competitiveness by leveraging advanced research infrastructures.

Grant Details