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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

This grant aims to significantly improve the understanding and modeling capacity related to the use and emissions of F-gases (Fluorinated greenhouse gases). The core objective is to develop better regional pathways for mitigating these emissions, particularly within the refrigeration, air conditioning, and heat pump (RACHP) sectors, and to understand how these efforts interact with the broader decarbonisation of the energy system. It seeks to provide modelling tools that assist countries (especially Montreal Protocol parties) in making informed policy decisions for implementing the Kigali Agreement and aligning with the Paris Agreement's climate goals. The target recipients are primarily research-focused organizations and entities with strong R&D capabilities, including universities, research institutions, and potentially innovative companies (SMEs and larger enterprises). The grant is SECTOR-SPECIFIC, focusing on environmental science, climate action, energy systems, and advanced modeling/technology development related to greenhouse gas mitigation. Geographically, the project's scope is global, requiring analysis across all main regions, differentiating between countries under Article 5 of the Montreal Protocol and those that are not. However, funding eligibility typically applies to entities located in EU Member States and countries associated with the Horizon Europe programme. Key filtering criteria for initial screening include demonstrated expertise in F-gas dynamics, atmospheric modeling, energy system integration, and a commitment to open science practices. This grant is part of the broader Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025, indicating it falls within a recurring, strategic funding context.

Financial Structure

This grant operates under a lump sum funding model, which simplifies financial management by providing a fixed contribution based on agreed work packages and deliverables, rather than actual incurred costs.

Budget Range: The total budget allocated for this specific topic (HORIZON-CL5-2025-06-D1-03) is €7,500,000.
Grant Amount per Project: Individual projects under this topic are expected to receive grants ranging from a minimum of €2,500,000 to a maximum of €3,000,000.
Currency: All financial amounts are in EUR (Euros).
Funding Rate: The grant covers 100.0% of the estimated eligible costs agreed upon within the lump sum. Payments do not depend on actual incurred costs but on the proper implementation and completion of defined work packages.
Eligible Costs (for lump sum calculation): The lump sum is determined based on an approximation of what would be eligible costs in a traditional grant. These include:
- Personnel costs: Employees, natural persons under direct contract, seconded persons, SME owners, natural person beneficiaries.
- Subcontracting costs.
- Purchase costs: Travel and subsistence, equipment (depreciation or full capitalised), other goods, works, and services.
- Other cost categories: Financial support to third parties (if applicable), internally invoiced goods/services, transnational/virtual access to research infrastructure, PCP/PPI procurement, Euratom Cofund staff mobility, ERC additional funding.
Indirect Costs: A 25% flat rate for indirect costs is applied to qualifying direct cost categories when calculating the lump sum.
Co-financing: The co-financing principle applies, meaning the total estimated costs of your action should be greater than the estimated Union contribution. The reimbursement rates (which effectively determine the lump sum) reflect this.
Payment Mechanism: Payments are released when the corresponding work packages of the action have been properly implemented and conditions met. If conditions for a work package are not met, that portion of the lump sum is not paid, but could be in a subsequent reporting period if conditions are then fulfilled.
Financial Reporting/Audits: Beneficiaries are not required to document actual costs incurred for the action. Financial checks and ex-post audits are typically not performed, reducing administrative burden. The focus of controls shifts to the technical implementation of the action and compliance with work package conditions.
Pre-financing: Standard Horizon Europe rules for pre-financing apply.
Mutual Insurance Mechanism: Between 5% and 8% of the total lump sum will be retained as a contribution to the Mutual Insurance Mechanism.

Eligibility Requirements

To be considered for this grant, applicants must meet several formal and capacity-based requirements, typically defined in the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes:

General Conditions: Proposals must adhere to page limits and layout specifications outlined in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. These are usually detailed in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.
Eligible Countries: Eligibility for funding is primarily determined by Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, which was not explicitly provided in the supporting documents. However, as a Horizon Europe grant, it typically includes:
- All EU Member States: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.
- Additionally, certain non-EU/non-Associated Countries may be eligible if specific funding provisions are made, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
Financial and Operational Capacity: Applicants must demonstrate sufficient financial and operational capacity, as described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes. This ensures entities have the resources and capabilities to successfully implement the proposed project.
Legal and Financial Set-up: The grant will take the form of a lump sum contribution, as authorized by the Decision of 7 July 2021. This means eligible costs are pre-defined and payments are tied to the completion of work packages rather than incurred expenses.
Open Science Practices: A crucial requirement is adherence to open science principles. This mandates open access to any new modules, models, or tools developed or substantially improved with EU funding. This includes comprehensive documentation, availability of model code, and input data developed under the action.
Organizational Structure: While not explicitly stated, Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) typically expect or strongly encourage consortia (multi-beneficiary projects) to foster collaboration and maximize impact. The supporting documents mention lump sum funding being suitable for 'large multi-beneficiary projects' and 'small to mid-sized consortia'.

Application Process

Applying for this grant involves a structured electronic submission process and adherence to specific timelines and documentation requirements.

Application Deadlines: The submission deadline for proposals is 2025-09-24 00:00:00+0000.
Submission Procedure: This is a single-stage submission process. Applications must be submitted through the Electronic Submission Service accessible via the Funding & Tenders Portal. You will need to authenticate your identity, typically via EU Login or a third-party sign-in service.
Required Documentation: Key materials include:
- Application Form Templates: A specific application form tailored to this call will be available in the Submission System (e.g., standard application form for HE RIA, IA).
- Detailed Budget Table (HE LS): Since this is a lump sum grant, you must prepare a detailed budget breakdown using the provided templates. This breakdown should show the lump sum contribution per work package and per beneficiary, based on estimated eligible costs.
- Part B of the Application Form: This section contains details regarding page limits and layout requirements for your proposal.
Evaluation Process: Proposals will be evaluated by external independent experts according to the criteria of Excellence, Impact, and Quality and Efficiency of the Implementation. The evaluation also includes a financial assessment of the proposed lump sum budget.
Support and Guidance: A comprehensive suite of support resources is available to applicants:
- Online Manual: Provides guidance on procedures from proposal submission to grant management.
- Horizon Europe Programme Guide: Offers detailed guidance on the structure, budget, and political priorities of Horizon Europe.
- Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ: Answers common questions on submission, evaluation, and grant management.
- Research Enquiry Service: For general questions about European research and EU Framework Programmes.
- National Contact Points (NCPs): Provide country-specific guidance, practical information, and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe.
- Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): Offers advice to businesses, particularly SMEs, on EU research funding.
- IT Helpdesk: For technical issues with the Funding & Tenders Portal (e.g., passwords, access rights, submission technicalities).
- European IPR Helpdesk: Assistance with intellectual property issues.
- CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk: Advice on standardization in project proposals.
- Partner Search: A tool to help find partner organizations for your consortium.

Evaluation Criteria

Applications for this grant will be evaluated based on the standard Horizon Europe procedures, with specific criteria detailed in Annex D and F of the Work Programme General Annexes. The evaluation process involves external independent experts and focuses on three main aspects:

Excellence: This assesses the quality of the proposed research, its novelty, scientific soundness, and the extent to which it advances the state of the art in F-gas modeling and climate science. It includes the quality of the methodology, the clarity of objectives, and the interdisciplinary approach.
Impact: This criterion evaluates the potential effects of the project. For this grant, key impact expectations include:
- Improved knowledge: Enhancing understanding of regional F-gas pathways, mitigation options, and their interaction with energy system decarbonisation.
- Improved modelling capacity: Development of tools for national-level assessment to inform policy options for ambitious implementation of the Kigali Agreement, including transition to natural refrigerants, and synergies with the Paris Agreement.
- Alignment: Ensuring the project's outcomes align with the objectives of Regulation (EU) 2024/573 on fluorinated greenhouse gases and the Montreal Protocol.
- Open Science: Contribution to a more open research environment through mandatory open access to research outputs (models, code, data) following FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable).
Quality and Efficiency of the Implementation: This assesses the quality of the work plan, the appropriateness of the resources, and the management structure. For lump sum grants, experts with financial expertise will specifically:
- Check the budget estimate: Assess if the proposed lump sum approximates actual eligible costs based on relevant benchmarks (market prices, statistical data, historical data).
- Resource Assessment: Verify that the resources proposed (personnel, equipment, sub-contracting) and the breakdown of lump sum shares per work package are sufficient and appropriate for achieving the activities and expected outputs.
- Co-financing Principle: Ensure that the total estimated costs of the action are greater than the estimated Union contribution.
- Sound Financial Management: Evaluate the detailed cost estimation, broken down by categories (personnel, subcontracting, purchase, other, and 25% flat rate for indirect costs).

Additionally, proposals are expected to contribute to clustering activities with other relevant projects to exploit synergies and maximize complementarities. Consideration of potential impacts on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) emissions should also be included.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Compliance and specific requirements for this grant extend beyond the typical administrative aspects, focusing heavily on research ethics, data management, and strategic collaboration.

Regulatory Compliance: Projects must adhere to relevant European regulations, notably Regulation (EU) 2024/573 on fluorinated greenhouse gases, and contribute to the implementation of international agreements like the Montreal Protocol, especially the Kigali Agreement.
Ethical Standards: While not explicitly detailed, all Horizon Europe projects are subject to strict ethical guidelines, ensuring research is conducted responsibly and respects fundamental rights.
Open Science and Data Management: This is a mandatory and critical aspect. All research outputs must be managed according to the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable). This includes not only open access to scientific publications and research data but also explicitly to software, models, algorithms, workflows, and protocols developed or substantially improved with EU funding. This requires robust technical documentation and availability of code and input data.
Intellectual Property (IP) Policies: IP generated by the project will be managed according to the Model Grant Agreement (MGA) for Horizon Europe, which typically promotes exploitation and dissemination while protecting beneficiaries' rights.
Risk Management: While financial audits are minimized due to the lump sum model, the granting authority retains the right to verify compliance with work package conditions through technical checks, reviews, or audits. Failure to meet work package conditions can lead to non-payment or recovery of undue payments. Controls will also focus on ethics, research integrity, dissemination, exploitation of results, IP management, and gender equality.
Clustering and Collaboration: A strong emphasis is placed on networking, intercomparison, and joint activities with other relevant projects (both within and outside Horizon Europe). Applicants should earmark necessary resources for these clustering activities to maximize synergies and complementarities.
Unique Project Focus: The grant is highly specialized, targeting the complex interplay between F-gas emissions, their mitigation pathways, and the decarbonisation of the energy system, specifically within the RACHP sector. It requires the development of national-level assessment tools for policy formulation.
Technical Specifications: The project requires robust modeling capabilities and the ability to represent complex interactions within the energy system and different regional contexts. Consideration of impacts on PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) emissions is also a specific technical requirement.

Grant Details