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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

• Grant's core objective: To decrease the European Union's dependency on imported raw materials, particularly for semiconductor production, by fostering sustainable and competitive production and refinement of these critical raw materials within the EU. • Target recipient type and size: The grant targets legal entities across the raw materials value chain, including industrial companies (SMEs and larger enterprises), research institutions, and technology providers. The size of the organization is not explicitly limited. • Designation: SECTOR-SPECIFIC (focused on semiconductor raw materials). • Geographic scope and location requirements: Projects must be based in EU Member States, Associated Countries, OECD countries, African Union Member States, MERCOSUR, CARIFORUM, Andean Community, and countries with strategic partnerships or trade agreements with the EU that include raw materials cooperation provisions. However, legal entities from China are explicitly excluded. • Key filtering criteria for initial screening: Applicants must propose innovative solutions for sustainable production of specified semiconductor raw materials, aiming for market uptake (TRLs 6-7). They must form multidisciplinary consortia covering the value chain from extraction to production. • Grant frequency and program context: This is a call within the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025 (Cluster 4, Industry), indicating it's part of a recurring program. It operates under the framework of the Critical Raw Materials Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1252), which aims to ensure a secure, resilient, and sustainable supply of critical raw materials for the EU.

Financial Structure

Total budget for the topic: EUR 24,000,000 for 2025.
Expected number of grants: 3.
Minimum grant amount per project: EUR 8,000,000.
Maximum grant amount per project: EUR 8,000,000.
Currency: EUR.
Funding Rate and Co-financing: Not explicitly specified in the provided documents. Horizon Europe Innovation Actions typically cover a significant percentage of eligible costs, implying co-financing by beneficiaries, but specific rates are not detailed here.
Eligible and Ineligible Costs: Not explicitly specified in the provided documents; generally governed by Annex G of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.
Financial Reporting and Audit Requirements: Not explicitly detailed in the provided documents; generally governed by Annex G of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type

Legal entities established in EU Member States.
Legal entities established in Associated Countries to Horizon Europe (as per Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes).
Legal entities established in OECD countries.
Legal entities established in African Union Member States.
Legal entities established in MERCOSUR countries.
Legal entities established in CARIFORUM countries.
Legal entities established in Andean Community countries.
Legal entities established in countries with which the EU has concluded strategic partnerships on raw materials (e.g., Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kazakhstan, Namibia, Norway, Rwanda, Serbia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, United States, Zambia).
Legal entities established in countries with EU trade agreements (or association/economic partnership or equivalent agreements, including Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships) containing raw materials cooperation provisions.
Exclusion: Legal entities established in China are not eligible to participate in Innovation Actions (IA) in any capacity.
Consortium requirements: Proposals should involve industrially- and user-driven multidisciplinary consortia covering the relevant value chain from extraction to the production of semiconductor-grade raw materials and alloys.

Project Scope & Technical Requirements

Actions must focus on raw materials for semiconductors that are necessary for the green and digital transition and strategic sectors (e.g., aero-space).
The scope includes specific raw materials such as antimony, arsenic, bismuth, boron, gallium, germanium, indium, selenium, silicon, and tellurium.
Solutions developed must facilitate market uptake, indicating a focus on higher Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs).
If projects use satellite-based earth observation, positioning, navigation, and/or related timing data and services, beneficiaries must utilize Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS.

General Conditions

Admissibility Conditions: Proposals must adhere to the page limit and layout described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.
Financial and Operational Capacity: Requirements are detailed in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Compliance: All projects must comply with the Critical Raw Materials Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1252), including its benchmarks and sustainability principles.

Application Process

Application Timeline

Planned opening date for submissions: 2025-05-22.
Application deadline: 2025-09-23T00:00:00+00:00.

Application Procedure

Submission Model: Single-stage submission process.
Submission Platform: Applications must be submitted through the Electronic Submission Service available on the Funding & Tenders Portal.
Application Forms: Standard application form templates for Horizon Europe Innovation Actions (HE IA) are provided and must be used.

Required Documentation and Materials

Proposal Content: Proposals must adhere to specified page limits and layout guidelines detailed in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes, as well as Part B of the Application Form.
Business Case and Exploitation Strategy: A comprehensive business case and a credible initial exploitation strategy for industrialisation are essential. Proposers are encouraged to utilize the extended page limit to adequately present these elements.
Deployment Strategy: For projects at Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) 6 and 7, a clear strategy to achieve future full-scale deployment in the EU is required, outlining the intentions of industrial partners post-project.
Clustering Activities Plan: Proposals should include a dedicated work package and/or task, with appropriate resources earmarked, for clustering activities to facilitate co-operation and knowledge sharing with other relevant selected projects.

Evaluation and Selection Process

Evaluation Criteria: Award criteria, scoring, and thresholds are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Review Process: Submission and evaluation processes are detailed in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.
Timeline: An indicative timeline for evaluation and the grant agreement process is outlined in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Post-Award Requirements

Implementation Timeline: Project implementation timelines will be established during the grant agreement phase.
Reporting Obligations: Reporting schedules and frequencies are not explicitly detailed in the provided grant description but are typically governed by the Model Grant Agreement (MGA) and Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Evaluation Criteria

Expected Impact

Projects are primarily evaluated on their expected contribution to the destination's impacts, specifically in:
- Decreasing EU dependency on imported raw materials for semiconductor production and reducing risk in European semiconductor supply chains.
- Achieving competitive, sustainable, and socially acceptable production and refinement of semiconductor raw materials within the EU.
- Increasing recovery rates of raw materials from low-grade/complex ores, residues, by-products, and various types of waste (extractive, manufacturing).
- Enhancing the competitiveness and sustainability of mineral processing and refining through improved cost-effectiveness, material, water, and energy efficiency, emission reduction, and process flexibility.
- Fostering collaboration among industry stakeholders, research institutions, and technology providers across the raw materials value chain.
- Improving the responsible supply of raw materials to Europe, aligning with the 'EU principles for sustainable raw materials'.
Business Case & Exploitation Strategy: A well-developed business case demonstrating enhanced market opportunities for participants and deployment within the EU (short to medium term) is crucial. This includes clearly describing target markets, estimated market size (EU and global), user/customer needs, cost-effectiveness, market position, and competitive advantage.
Deployment Strategy (for TRLs 6-7): A credible strategy for achieving future full-scale deployment in the EU, detailing the intentions of industrial partners post-project, is expected to receive strong consideration.

Quality and Efficiency of the Implementation

Quality of the Consortium: The consortium should be industrially- and user-driven and multidisciplinary, covering the relevant value chain from extraction to production.
Work Plan: The coherence and effectiveness of the work plan, including the allocation of resources for clustering activities and awareness campaigns.
Management: The strength of the management team and their commitment to the business case and exploitation strategy.

Quality of the Proposed Solution (Innovation Action)

Technological Innovation: Solutions should contribute to advancements in sustainable production, refining processes, and raw material recovery.
Standardisation: Consideration of standardisation aspects where relevant.

Other Considerations

Clustering Activities: Proposals should plan for and earmark resources for clustering activities with other selected projects to facilitate cross-project co-operation, consultations, and knowledge sharing.
Public Awareness: Actions should contribute to improving public awareness across the EU regarding the importance of raw materials and sustainable production solutions.
Gender Dimension: While not mandatory, integrating the gender dimension (sex and/or gender analysis) in research and innovation content is strongly encouraged if relevant to the proposal.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory and Ethical Compliance

Critical Raw Materials Act: Projects must comply with the objectives and benchmarks set out in Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 (the Critical Raw Materials Act).
Earth Observation/Navigation Data: If the project involves satellite-based earth observation, positioning, navigation, or related timing data and services, beneficiaries are mandated to use Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS.
Environmental and Social Standards: New critical raw materials projects must be planned and implemented sustainably, covering all aspects detailed in the European Commission's 'EU principles for sustainable raw materials' (2021). This includes robust environmental protection, prevention/minimization of socially adverse impacts, respect for human rights, and transparent business practices.
Stakeholder Engagement: Projects must ensure engagement in good faith, comprehensive, and equitable consultations with relevant stakeholders, including local communities and indigenous peoples. Fair compensation should be provided if potential resettlement is involved.
Certification Schemes: Compliance with relevant Union or national law, international standards, guidelines, and principles, or participation in a recognized sustainability certification scheme, is required.

Risk Management and Security

Supply Chain Resilience: Actions must contribute to increasing the EU's resilience in raw materials supply chains and reducing reliance on a limited number of third countries for critical raw materials.

Specific Exclusions and Limitations

Deep Sea Mining: Deep sea mining projects will not be recognized as Strategic Projects. While this directly refers to Strategic Projects within the Critical Raw Materials Act framework, it reflects a broader policy stance relevant to related calls.
China Exclusion: Legal entities established in China are explicitly ineligible for participation in this Innovation Action.

Strategic Alignment and Cross-Cutting Themes

European Autonomy: The project outcomes are expected to contribute significantly to Europe's open strategic autonomy in raw materials, chemicals, and innovative materials.
Sustainability & Green Transition: Projects should improve energy and process efficiency, minimize environmental impacts (including GHG emissions), and explore options for replacing critical raw materials with advanced materials.
SME Support: The overall context emphasizes the importance of strong support for SMEs to thrive within the materials ecosystem.
Knowledge Sharing: Consortia are encouraged to make voluntary contributions of data, indicators, and knowledge to relevant Joint Research Centre (JRC) platforms (e.g., INCITE, EIGL).
Gender Dimension: While not a mandatory requirement for the content of research and innovation, integrating the gender dimension (sex and/or gender analysis) is strongly encouraged if considered relevant for the specific proposal.

Grant Details