New round of submissions for the Forschungsinfrastrukturen.NRW funding competition

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Wanted: innovative, pioneering projects from companies and research institutions in NRW with economic potential for the EU internal market

The North Rhine-Westphalian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy (MWIKE) is organising the competition, for which the final submission round is now underway, together with the Ministry of Research and the Environment. The submission deadline is 28 February 2025 and the selected projects will receive around 24.5 million euros in EU funding as part of the ERDF/JTF NRW 2021-2027 programme.

North Rhine-Westphalia has a highly innovative research and development landscape and a strong industry characterised by small and medium-sized enterprises. In order to hold their own in international competition, they are dependent on innovation impulses. The aim of the Forschungsinfrastrukturen.NRW competition is to secure this innovative strength and drive forward the ecological transformation. In the third and final submission round, project outlines can now be submitted online. The competition is looking for innovative, new and pioneering projects with economic potential for the EU internal market that fulfil the objectives of the new EU initiative ‘Strategic Technologies for Europe’ (STEP). In particular, this involves the development or production of, for example, digital technologies and technology-intensive innovations, environmentally friendly or resource-efficient technologies and the securing of corresponding value chains in the EU.

The competition is aimed in particular at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), municipal companies and organisations, research and educational institutions as well as chambers, associations and foundations.

They can apply with their project outlines until 28 February 2025.