HORIZON BLOG: European R&D policy newsbytes (Archived_03)

The European battery industry is warning that planned German federal budget cuts to battery R&I funding, from €180 million to €70 million over the next three years, will have “dramatic” consequences.

“German industry and research institutes have a key role in creating a competitive battery value chain in Europe. Cutting back on research in such a drastic way will risk a standstill in a global competitive race and a brain drain for Europe as a whole,” said Fabrice Stassin, secretary general of the Batteries European Partnership Association.

Earlier this month, a consortium of industry stakeholders addressed an open letter to the European Commission urging it to safeguard the €925 million budget allocated to the EU’s batteries partnership, BATT4EU.

The European Union Agency for the Space Programme has published the second edition of its report into the Earth Observation (EO) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) market.

In 2023, global revenues reached €260 billion from GNSS, and €3.4 billion from EO. These are predicted to grow to €580 billion and nearly €6 billion respectively by 2033.

The adoption of EO and GNSS solutions is bolstered by “overarching market drivers such as the digital transition, climate change, growing population, energy demand and supply chain challenges, along with the rise of New Space entrepreneurship,” the report states.

Read the full report here.

The European Commission has launched a new policy platform on the European Research Area (ERA), a website providing a comprehensive overview of ERA policies and milestones.  

ERA is a long-standing plan to establish a single market for research, innovation and technology across Europe. The idea was launched 24 years ago but, more recently, EU policymakers have tried to breathe new life into it with calls for greater public and private investments in R&D across all member states, and a list of common policy actions.  

The new platform is part of the ERA governance framework and the Pact for Research and Innovation (R&I) in Europe. This platform includes: 

• up-to-date information about the state of implementation of the ERA Policy Agenda 
• insights into EU-wide activities contributing to make progress on the ERA 
• the ERA monitoring mechanism 

More details are available here.  

In a statement published today, the Scientific Council of the ERC calls on EU institutions to agree on doubling the budget of FP10, the next framework programme for research and innovation.  

The current programme, Horizon Europe, has a budget of €95.5 billion, but research associations and MEPs have already called for a €200 billion budget for its successor, FP10.  

Now, the ERC is joining that chorus, asking for a much bigger budget, in line with EU’s ambitions in science and technology. 

“In view of increasing global competition, time is running out for Europe to maintain its competitive edge in global science and technology,” the statement says.  

The EU is struggling to keep up with its main competitors in research funding and high-quality scientific output. It is also lagging behind in developing and deploying advanced technologies crucial for future economic growth. “Reversing these trends will require huge efforts at the EU and national levels,” the statement reads.

The European Parliament’s food safety committee has adopted its position on a proposal by the European Commission on New Genomic Techniques (NGT) setting two different categories and two sets of rules for NGT plants.  

However, MEPs introduced a full ban on patents for all NGT plants and plant materials, to avoid legal uncertainties, increased costs and new dependencies for farmers and breeders. MEPs also request a report by June 2025 on the impact of patents on the access of breeders and farmers to varied plant reproductive material. MEPs also say the EU should update its rules on intellectual property rights to reflect that. 

“This proposal is critical for strengthening Europe's food safety in a sustainable manner,” said Jessica Polfjärd, and MEP from Sweden who is rapporteur on the file. “We finally have a chance to implement rules that embrace innovation and I look forward to concluding negotiations in the Parliament and with the Council as soon as possible.” 

The Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA) started 2024 by welcoming 17 new members, bringing the total number of coalition partners to over 600. The coalition brings together various stakeholders in the field of research and research policy to work together to improve research assessment practices. 

Menico Rizzi, steering board representative for the CoARA membership application subgroup, said the growing number of members is testament to the global relevance of the group’s mission. “By uniting organisations from various corners of the world, CoARA is creating a truly inclusive platform for advancing research assessment practices globally that is in the unique position of exploiting the extraordinary richness of ideas and input generated by diversity,” he said.

The European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) is calling for a substantial increase to its €300 million budget for the next framework programme, FP10. 

In a new position paper, the organisation emphasised its key role in advancing the European Research Area, supporting cross-border research cooperation, funding young researchers and boosting innovation. 

“Given the high number of proposals submitted annually to the COST Open Call, of which many excellent proposals cannot be funded, the steep growth in the number of network participants, the very high customer satisfaction rate, and recent substantial inflation, COST calls for multi-annual funding with a substantially increased budget in FP10,” the organisation states. 

The expert group on the economic and societal impact of research and innovation (ESIR), which provides policy advice to the European Commission, has now started its third mandate. 

The group was formed in 2020, just before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and is composed of 16 high-level experts. Under the new mandate, the group will look at technology governance, especially related to artificial intelligence, as well as societal transitions, and Europe’s east-west innovation divide.

The European Investment Bank and Nordic Investment Bank are to provide €371 million to fund a project to construct a large-scale low carbon steel plan in Boden, Sweden.

The plant is being planned by the firm H2 Green Steel, and is an attempt to decarbonise the steel sector, which accounts for 7% of global emissions.

€200 million of the funding is provided under the InvestEU programme, designed to provide firms with long-term capital to support aims like economic recovery, green growth and job creation. 

London and Washington have launched a new strategic dialogue on biological security, aiming to coordinate R&D efforts and shape innovation.

The countries agreed to work together to “bolster future heath and economic resilience against a growing and diverse spectrum of biological threats,” in a joint statement on 10 January.

This includes working out R&D needs at the beginning of new disease outbreaks, and supporting “early technology assessments.”

They also pledged to promote “responsible” innovation in biotechnology, “shaping global norms and standards on biosafety and biosecurity.”