HORIZON BLOG: European R&D policy newsbytes (Archived_01)

The European Parliament has adopted a report by German MEP Christian Ehler on the implementation of the European Innovation Council (EIC), the EU’s new vehicle for scaling-up innovative start-ups.

The report calls on he European Commission to “have an open dialogue on the future of the EIC,” Ehler said in a statement on Tuesday.

Ehler has previously criticised the Commission for delays in implementing the equity component of the EIC and threatened to defund the programme in 2023. He later withdrew the budget threat.

Price increases for natural gas, district heating and electricity continue to pose enormous challenges for German universities despite ambitious energy-saving measures and promises to put a cap on prices.

The general assembly of the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK) has called on the federal and state-level decision makers to take further steps to lift the financial burden posed by rising energy prices on universities.

HRK President Peter-André Alt said universities will benefit from a recent agreement between the federal government and the länder on an emergency aid package for the purchase of natural gas and district heating, including a gas and electricity price cap that will take effect next year in spring.

“It is very gratifying and an important signal of recognition that the December emergency aid will benefit all universities, regardless of size or profile,” said Alt. “Now the members of the Bundestag are called upon to take into account the role and special needs of the universities in the legal definition of further measures," he added.

 

Taiwan has this week put forward a proposal to increase tax breaks on technology companies’ research and development, in a bid to maintain its status as one of the global leaders in semiconductor manufacturing. 

The proposal involves raising the corporate income tax break from 15% to 25%. The change must still be approved by parliament with the government hoping it can be passed by the beginning of next year. 

Several of Taiwan’s competitors in semiconductor manufacturing, including the US, Japan and Korea, are investing heavily in the sector to ensure supply in the face of global supply chain disruptions, linked primarily to the Covid pandemic. 

The US’ €52.7 billion CHIPS and Science Act was introduced in August this year, for example.

The European Commission is also trying to push through Europe’s own Chips act, but experts and members of the European Parliament have criticised it for focusing more on manufacturing rather than investments in R&D to create a new generation of high-end chips. 

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has opened a new office in Luxembourg focusing on the crossroads between technology and humanitarian issues.  

The idea of the humanitarian office for cyberspace is to carry out research on humanitarian issues linked to technology – think hacking, disinformation, online scams, etc.. The office will also look into how technology can support those in need, for example, information sharing among those affected by conflict, connecting people to programmes that help them secure their data, mobile phone cash transfer programmes, etc. 

Martin Schüepp, ICRC’s director of operations, said the objective is to “ensure that digital technologies do not expose people to further risk and that digital assistance programmes effectively create positive outcomes for people in conflict”. 

“This new office will advance technical solutions that can be safely deployed and that conform to our fundamental neutrality, impartiality, independence and humanity, including in a digital space,” he said. 

The office’s opening was supported by Luxembourg’s Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs. 

The ITER Council met this week (16-17 November) to provide its latest review on the ITER fusion mega-project in the south of France. 

The site for the nuclear fusion research and engineering site has been under development since 2007 and its First Plasma machine is scheduled at the end of December 2025. It will be the world’s largest experimental fusion facility when it is completed. 

But the latest review, headed up by the ITER Council’s new director general Pietro Barabaschi, who was appointed in September this year, has stated the need for a new timeline to complete the project. 

The project is struggling with acquiring special components due to global supply chain issues and the fact that Russia is one of the key partners in the venture. 

We previously reported that the The European Court of Auditors said in a report that Russian involvement in the project presents a risk of further delays to the venture. 

However, a spokesman for ITER said that the Russian government has provided assurances on their commitment to the project. 

The latest review, the 31st of its kind, noted the continued progress on the construction works, but warned that there was a need for “extensive repairs” on key components, which the Council has urged the director general to assess so that repair work can begin as soon as possible. 

It also noted the continued commitments of the member states involved in the project, which are China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the United States, and the EU, which is contributing roughly half the costs of construction. 

The Canadian government has announced on 16 November more than CA$1 billion (about €725 million) in funding to support researchers in different fields and stages of careers across the country.

The investment is made through a number of different funding programs. Among them, the Research Support Fund and Incremental Project Grants will provide more than CA$427 million (€308 million) to help 142 institutions advance their research environment.

Since 2016, the Canadian government has provided more than $14 billion in new resources to support science and research. 

The EIC Fund, the equity investment arm of the European Innovation Council has made 35 investment decisions worth €190 million to scale up deep tech innovations, the EU Commissioner for research Mariya Gabriel has announced today.

Among the funded companies, the Commission highlighted Apix Analytics, a company which produced the first miniaturised universal gas analyser, and Lattice Medical, a biomedical start-up whose 3D technology allows adipose tissue to regenerate naturally, have already been followed by investment agreements with the companies.

The 35 decisions have been selected out of 184 companies proposed to receive equity investments through the EIC Fund.

The decision marks a step forward in the implementation EIC accelerator investment part after EIC equity investments were delayed because of administrative hurdles.

“Our goal is for the EIC Fund to be the investor of choice for visionary European innovators,” said Gabriel."

The European Commission has launched a call for proposals on innovative cybersecurity technologies under the Digital Europe programme.

A total of €176.5 million worth of grants will go towards improving the tools and infrastructures for enhanced cybersecurity cooperation between the Member States and the Commission.

The calls are open until 15 February 2023 to entities from the EU Member States, EFTA/EEA countries. More details are available here.

Swiss and Austrian politicians have met yesterday to discuss deepening cooperation in education, research and innovation and the future of Switzerland in Horizon Europe. Swiss state secretary Martina Hirayama visited Austria for talks with Martin Polaschek, minister of education, science and research.

The two countries have so far worked together in 800 joint Horizon 2020 projects and 100 Eureka inter-governmental network projects, an initiative for cross-border cooperation projects in technology and market-oriented research and development.

But officials hope to further boost cooperation, as the Austrian government is among the EU member states pressuring the European Commission to allow Switzerland in Horizon Europe. Switzerland wants to become an associated country in Horizon Europe but the Commission has suspended talks over political disagreements concerning delayed broader EU-Swiss economic relations and delayed payments to EU’s cohesion budget.

EU leaders extended their welcome to Australia to join the EU’s Horizon Europe research programme, during a meeting in the margins of the G20 Summit in Bali.  

The three leaders attending the meeting – Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese, EU Council president Charles Michel, and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen – noted health, climate and digital as areas to explore for future cooperation under Horizon Europe.