Accelerate the uptake of life-cycle assessment (LCA) for Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) chemicals and materials and resulting products (RIA)

This Horizon Europe grant opportunity focuses on accelerating the uptake of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) chemicals, materials, and resulting products. Identified as HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-52, this initiative falls under Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and operates under a lump sum grant agreement, which means it will cover 100% of eligible costs without requiring co-funding from applicants.

Eligible applicants include universities, research organizations, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and other relevant entities engaged in materials science and chemistry, primarily from EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. A consortium of at least three entities from different countries is typically required, emphasizing the collaborative nature of Horizon Europe projects.

The total budget for this grant is €15 million, with an indicative funding amount ranging from €4 million to €5 million per project. The application process is an open, single-stage call with a submission deadline set for September 23, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time.

Projects are expected to contribute to multiple goals, such as supporting EU sustainability strategies, reducing costs for companies to implement LCA, and enhancing the efficiency and user-friendliness of LCA applications, particularly at the early design stages. The scope of the projects will involve identifying and addressing gaps in LCA tools and methodologies, ensuring comprehensive consideration from raw material extraction to end-of-life disposal.

Proposals should focus on developing user-friendly LCA tools, advanced datasets based on established methods, and solutions to enhance data quality and reduce uncertainty in LCA assessments. The projects are encouraged to engage with stakeholders, particularly SMEs, to harmonize the use of tools and methodologies, promote knowledge transfer, and contribute to policy discussions.

Additionally, collaboration with existing projects and initiatives, such as the Partnership on Assessment of Risks from Chemicals and the SSbD toolbox, is encouraged to foster synergies and enhance the impact of proposals. The expected outcomes include facilitating data-driven decisions for a greener future and supporting the safe and sustainable design of chemicals and materials.

General participation conditions require adherence to proposal formats and eligibility criteria as outlined in documentation provided by Horizon Europe. The application materials will be accessible through the Funding & Tenders Portal.

In summary, this grant opportunity aims to enhance the implementation of LCA in the chemical and materials industry, making it more accessible and integrated with sustainability practices, ultimately contributing to the EU's green transition and sustainable industrial practices.

This is a summary of a Horizon Europe funding opportunity related to accelerating the uptake of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) chemicals, materials, and resulting products. This call, identified as HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-52, falls under the Horizon Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and utilizes a lump sum grant agreement. The call opened for submissions on May 22, 2025, with a deadline of September 23, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time.

The expected outcomes of projects funded under this topic include: supporting the implementation of various EU strategies and regulations with scientific evidence on the sustainability of chemicals and materials throughout their life cycle, significantly reducing the cost for companies (including SMEs) to apply LCA, enabling efficient and simplified LCA application at the early design stage, and providing advanced, reliable, and predictive life cycle models and impact assessment methods that allow for a satisfactory measurement of planetary boundaries.

The scope of the projects should focus on identifying and filling gaps in LCA tools, methods, and data to improve the environmental sustainability and efficiency of chemicals, materials, and resulting products, while considering the criticality of raw materials. The Environmental Footprint (EF) methods should be built upon, and all stages from raw material extraction to end-of-life disposal should be included. Projects should enable data-driven decisions and actions for a greener and more sustainable future, respecting planetary boundaries, and align with the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) framework.

Multidisciplinary research activities should address the following: developing advanced, user-friendly LCA tools and methodologies; developing LCA datasets based on EC PEF methods for at least three relevant chemicals or materials and their resulting products; developing solutions to fill data and assessment gaps and estimate LCA uncertainty using advanced digital technologies, modeling, machine learning, and AI; feeding relevant sustainability databases with FAIR data; providing guidance for LCA modeling of circularity scenarios; ensuring cost-effectiveness and user-friendliness of developed tools; developing guidelines for seamless integration of LCA approaches with existing safety assessment tools; engaging with stakeholders, especially SMEs, to promote harmonized use of tools and methodologies; performing training and knowledge transfer activities; contributing to policy briefs and technical discussions; leveraging the experience of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) researchers; and evaluating the economic and social dimensions of sustainability at the product level.

Proposals should indicate contributions to the Strategic Research and Innovation Plan for chemicals and materials, and international collaboration is encouraged. Projects should build on or collaborate with existing projects and develop synergies with other relevant initiatives, funding programs, and platforms, including the Partnership on Assessment of Risks from Chemicals (PARC), the SSbD toolbox, and the IRISS project. Collaboration with the ORIENTING project is also encouraged.

The budget overview indicates a total of 15,000,000 EUR allocated for HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-52 with an indicative number of 3 grants, and a range of other topics with varying budgets and grant numbers. The opening date for submissions is May 22, 2025, and the deadline is September 23, 2025.

General conditions for participation include adherence to admissibility conditions regarding proposal page limits and layout, eligibility of countries as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Horizon Europe Programme Guide, and financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria as described in Annex C. Evaluation and award processes are detailed in Annexes D and F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the relevant EU decision.

Application forms, evaluation forms, model grant agreements, and additional guidance documents are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal.

In summary, this Horizon Europe call seeks to fund research and innovation projects that will advance the application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in the chemicals and materials industry, making it more accessible, cost-effective, and integrated with sustainability and safety considerations. The goal is to support the development and implementation of EU strategies and regulations related to eco-design, ecolabelling, and the safe and sustainable design of products, ultimately contributing to a greener and more sustainable future. Applicants should focus on developing user-friendly tools, reliable data, and comprehensive methodologies that consider planetary boundaries and engage with relevant stakeholders.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the nature of Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and Innovation Actions (IA) and Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), eligible applicants can include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, and other relevant organizations from eligible countries. The HORIZON-COFUND action suggests that public and private organizations managing research and innovation programs are also eligible.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant. There are also HORIZON Programme Cofund Actions.

Consortium Requirement: While not explicitly stated, the encouragement of international collaboration and synergies with other projects suggests that a consortium is preferred, though single applicants might be possible depending on the specific topic requirements.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU member states and associated countries as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The program targets the following sectors: chemicals, materials, digital technologies, industry, twin transition (digital and green), and human factors in industrial contexts. Specific areas include life cycle assessment (LCA), safe and sustainable by design (SSbD), eco-design, circular economy, risk assessment of chemicals, advanced materials, and related digital technologies like modeling, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned, but the eligibility extends to EU member states and associated countries. Non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Project Stage: The project stages range from research and innovation (RIA) to innovation actions (IA), indicating support for projects from development and validation to demonstration and potentially commercialization.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary widely depending on the specific topic and type of action:
HORIZON-RIA: around EUR 6,000,000 (indicative)
HORIZON-CSA: around EUR 1,000,000 to EUR 3,000,000 (indicative)
HORIZON-IA: around EUR 3,000,000 to EUR 8,000,000 or higher (indicative)
HORIZON-COFUND: around EUR 90,000,000 (indicative)
Some topics specify a funding range, such as EUR 4,000,000 to EUR 7,000,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: Success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight into the potential competitiveness.

Co-funding Requirement: For HORIZON-COFUND actions, co-funding is implied as it is a co-fund action. For other action types, co-funding requirements are not explicitly mentioned in the scraped content.

Summary:
This Horizon Europe call (INDUSTRY, HORIZON-CL4-2025-01) offers various funding opportunities for research, innovation, coordination, and support actions across several industrial and technological domains. The primary goal is to support the implementation of EU strategies related to sustainability, digital transformation, and industrial competitiveness. The call includes different types of actions, such as Research and Innovation Actions (RIA), Innovation Actions (IA), Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), and Cofund Actions, each with specific objectives and funding ranges. Projects are expected to contribute to policy development, create user-friendly tools, promote international collaboration, and engage with stakeholders, particularly SMEs. Eligible applicants include a wide range of organizations from EU member states and associated countries, with a focus on multidisciplinary research and the integration of social sciences and humanities. The funding mechanism is primarily lump sum grants, and the application process involves a single-stage submission. Specific topics include accelerating the uptake of life-cycle assessment (LCA) for safe and sustainable by design (SSbD) chemicals and materials and resulting products. The call aims to foster a greener, more digital, and more resilient European industry.