EUREC supported by 9 associations from the renewable energy field call on the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Mariya Gabriel, to keep Horizon Europe budget proposed in June 2018. You will find the letter text and the possibility to download it down below:

Horizon Europe is a vital instrument to cement the EU’s recovery long-term and embed it in the transition to climate neutrality by 2050 – rightfully a key policy priority of the EU. With a smaller Horizon Europe budget, the EU must invest sensibly. It must prioritise funding for those technologies that will deliver on the EU’s energy & climate targets.

The European Council has chosen to cut Horizon Europe’s budget as part of an agreement on an EU budget intended to help the EU to recover from the immediate shock of the COVID-19 crisis. Cutting spending on R&I is short-sighted, as Europe’s long-term competitiveness depends on our mastery of new technology. During economic downturns, public support is especially important in helping companies execute their R&D strategies.

The European Council did however increase the proportion of the overall budget that must be spent on climate-relevant work from 25% to 30%, insisting that this target apply to the total of MFF and Next Generation EU spending. This sent two clear political messages, first that there must be no compromise on the fight to save the climate and second that the mandate for EU-level action is increased. We applaud this.

The European Council’s stipulation will now be implemented in the 2021-2027 budgets. We call on the Commission to honour the spirit of the Conclusions by maintaining the Horizon Europe budget for Cluster 5 (Climate, Energy and Mobility) and the climate-relevant parts of Cluster 4 (Digital, Industry and Space) at least at the levels proposed in the Commission’s original June 2018 proposal (15 bn EUR for Cluster 5).