Innovative manufacturing of wind energy technologies
HORIZON Innovation Actions
Basic Information
- Identifier
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-06
- Programme
- Cluster 5 Call 02-2025 (WP 2025)
- Programme Period
- 2021 - 2027
- Status
- Closed (31094503)
- Opening Date
- May 6, 2025
- Deadline
- September 3, 2025
- Deadline Model
- single-stage
- Budget
- €5,000,000
- Min Grant Amount
- €5,000,000
- Max Grant Amount
- €5,000,000
- Expected Number of Grants
- 1
- Keywords
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-06HORIZON-CL5-2025-02
Description
Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
- Energy consumers have access to affordable, clean, and secure energy with lower environmental impacts and improved health and safety working conditions along the entire value chain;
- The European wind energy supply chain strengthens its strategic autonomy, technology leadership, competitiveness, and technology export potential;
- The deployment of wind energy in Europe is facilitated thanks to innovations enabling large-volume manufacturing therefore contributing to the achievement of the Net Zero Industry Act.
Proposals are expected to address at least three of the following aspects:
- Develop and demonstrate innovative wind energy manufacturing technologies that improve the health and safety working conditions of staff along the supply chain;
- Develop and demonstrate innovative wind energy manufacturing technologies that allow for reduced energy and material consumption, increased circularity, lower costs and decreased pollution;
- Develop and demonstrate automated and/or semi-automated manufacturing solutions that ensure high-quality products, high productivity, increase the lifetime and the reliability of wind energy systems;
- Develop and demonstrate manufacturing solutions for wind energy technologies that allow for high production throughput, optimisation of logistics and transport of components and reduced impacts on the environment, cultural heritage, landscapes and people.
The project could, for instance, support the development of innovative manufacturing solutions for onshore and/or offshore wind energy production, including airborne wind energy. It could focus on specific components of a wind energy system (e.g., blades, nacelles and towers, gearboxes, foundations, generators, floaters, mooring systems, anchors, kites, etc.).
The project should analyse and report on the potential for standardisation of the solutions developed, as well as on possible connections with ongoing standardisation efforts.
The project must include a clear go/no-go milestone ahead of entering the demonstration phase. Before this go/no-go milestone, the project must deliver the detailed engineering plans, a techno-economic assessment, and all needed permits for the demonstrator. The project proposal is expected to present a clear and convincing pathway and timeline to obtaining the permits.
The project must assess the sustainability of the proposed solutions in environmental and socio-economic terms.
The demonstration must be at a realistic, representative scale and must cover a continuous interval of at least six months.
When developing improvements along the supply chain to improve the health and safety working conditions, projects must give special consideration to the gender dimension.
Whenever the expected exploitation of project results entails developing, creating, manufacturing and marketing a product or process, or in creating and providing a service, the plan for the exploitation and dissemination of results must include a strategy for such exploitation. The exploitation plan should include preliminary plans for scalability, commercialisation, and deployment (feasibility study, business plan) indicating the possible funding sources to be potentially used (in particular the Innovation Fund).
Destination & Scope
This Destination includes activities targeting a sustainable, secure and competitive energy supply. In line with the scope of cluster 5, this includes activities in the areas of renewable energy; energy system, grids and storage; as well as Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS).
This Destination contributes directly to the Strategic Plan’s Key Strategic Orientations ‘Green transition’, ‘Digital transition’ and ‘A more resilient, competitive, inclusive and democratic Europe’.
In line with the Strategic Plan, the overall expected impact of this Destination is to contribute to the ‘Ensuring more sustainable, secure and competitive energy supply through solutions for smart energy systems based on renewable energy solutions’.
This destination contributes to the activities of the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan) and its implementation working groups.
The main impacts to be generated by topics under this Destination are:
Renewable energy
- Energy producers have access to competitive European renewable energy and renewable fuel technologies and deploy them to enhance the EU’s energy security. This will contribute to the 2030 “Fit for 55” targets (in particular, at least 42.5% renewable energy share and aiming for 45% in the EU energy consumption, 5.5% advanced biofuels and renewable fuels of non-biological origin share in EU fuel consumption). It will also contribute to the indicative target of at least 5% innovative renewable energy technology for the newly installed renewable energy capacity. By 2050, climate neutrality in the energy sector will be achieved in a sustainable way in environmental (e.g., biodiversity, multiple uses of land and water, natural resources, pollution) and socioeconomic terms, and in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.
- Technology providers have access to European, reliable, sustainable, and affordable value chains of renewable energy and renewable fuel technologies.
- Economic sectors benefit from better integration of renewable energy and renewable fuel-based solutions that are among others cost-effective, efficient, flexible, reliable, and sustainable. Such integration is facilitated by digital technologies and by renewable energy technologies that provide network stability and reliability.
- European researchers benefit from a stronger community and from a reinforced scientific basis on renewable energy and renewable fuel technologies, also through international collaborations.
- European industries benefit from a reinforced export potential of renewable energy and renewable fuel technologies, also through international collaborations.
- European industries become frontrunners and maintain technological leadership in innovative renewable energy technologies in line with the energy union strategy.
- European citizens, including disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, have access to an energy market that is affordable, fair and equitable, more resilient, uses all different types of local renewable energy resources, and is less dependent on fossil fuels. Local communities benefit from a more decentralised and secure energy system and from multiple uses of land and water. Less citizens experience fuel and energy poverty.
- Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan) implementation working groups on solar photovoltaics, solar thermal technologies, renewable fuels and bioenergy, wind energy, geothermal energy, and ocean energy benefit from a reinforced scientific basis and collaboration on renewable energy and renewable fuel technologies towards meeting the ambitious targets of the European Green Deal.
Energy systems, grids & storage
R&I actions will support the just digital and green transformation of the energy system through advanced solutions for accelerating the energy systems integration and decarbonisation. The developed clean, sustainable solutions will contribute to making the energy system and supply more reliable, resilient, and secure. The solutions will contribute to increase flexibility and grid hosting capacity for renewables through optimising cross sector integration and grid scale storage. They will enhance the competitiveness of the European value chain, reduce pressure on resources (also by making technologies ‘circular by design’) and decrease dependencies.
Innovative and cost-effective energy storage (integration) solutions are developed, that provide flexibility to the energy system, reduce total cost of grid operation and enhancement and that minimise the use of critical raw materials and ensure, to the best extent possible, their reuse and recycling, are key elements of the energy system.
Carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR)
- Accelerated development of carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS) as a CO2 emission mitigation option in electricity generation, in industry applications and carbon dioxide removal technologies (including conversion of CO2 to energy products).
- Reduced EU’s dependency on imported fossil fuels and increased energy security, reduced energy system’s vulnerability to the impacts of the changing climate.
Eligibility & Conditions
General conditions
1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout
2. Eligible Countries
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. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
3. Other Eligible Conditions
described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion
described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds
are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.
5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes
are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.
5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement
described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.
6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants
Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027) – and in actions under the Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (2021-2025). [[This decision is available on the Funding and Tenders Portal, in the reference documents section for Horizon Europe, under ‘Simplified costs decisions’ or through this link: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/guidance/ls-decision_he_en.pdf]].
described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Specific conditions
described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme]
Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA):
Application form templates — the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System
Standard application form (HE RIA, IA)
Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations
Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA)
Guidance
Model Grant Agreements (MGA)
Call-specific instructions
Additional documents:
HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 1. General Introduction
HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 8. Climate, Energy and Mobility
HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 14. General Annexes
HE Framework Programme 2021/695
HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment
EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual
Support & Resources
Online Manual is your guide on the procedures from proposal submission to managing your grant.
Horizon Europe Programme Guide contains the detailed guidance to the structure, budget and political priorities of Horizon Europe.
Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ – find the answers to most frequently asked questions on submission of proposals, evaluation and grant management.
Research Enquiry Service – ask questions about any aspect of European research in general and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular.
National Contact Points (NCPs) – get guidance, practical information and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe. There are also NCPs in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’).
Enterprise Europe Network – contact your EEN national contact for advice to businesses with special focus on SMEs. The support includes guidance on the EU research funding.
IT Helpdesk – contact the Funding & Tenders Portal IT helpdesk for questions such as forgotten passwords, access rights and roles, technical aspects of submission of proposals, etc.
European IPR Helpdesk assists you on intellectual property issues.
CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk – the European Standards Organisations advise you how to tackle standardisation in your project proposal.
The European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment – consult the general principles and requirements specifying the roles, responsibilities and entitlements of researchers, employers and funders of researchers.
Partner Search help you find a partner organisation for your proposal.
Latest Updates
PROPOSAL NUMBERS
Call HORIZON-CL5-2025-02 has closed on the 03/09/2025 (17:00).
233 proposals have been submitted.
The breakdown per topic is:
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-03 (IA): 16 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-06 (CSA): 1 proposal
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-08 (RIA): 38 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-10 (COFUND): 1 proposal
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-11 (CSA): 20 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D2-12 (CSA): 0 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-03 (IA): 17 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-04 (RIA): 19 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-06 (IA): 23 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-09 (IA): 2 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-11 (IA): 18 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-15 (CSA): 12 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-16 (CSA): 2 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-17 (IA): 7 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-21 (IA): 12 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-25 (RIA): 14 proposals
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-26 (RIA): 1 proposal
- HORIZON-CL5-2025-02-D3-27 (IA): 30 proposals
Evaluation results are expected to be communicated in December 2025.
Please note that the deadline of all 18 topics under call HORIZON-CL5-2025-02 has been postponed from 02 September 2025 to 03 September 2025 - 17:00:00 Brussels local time.