Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS)
European Commission
A unique opportunity to drive sustainability, competitiveness, and technological advancements in industries critical to Europe's Green Deal goals
- Use: R&D;
- Date closing: -
- Amount: 5M € - 18.0M €
- Industry focus: Others;
- Total budget: 135M €
- Entity type: Public Agency
- Vertical focus: cleantech, sustainability, coal, steel
- Website: https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/news/all-research-and-innovation-news/eu-provides-eu175-million-support-research-innovation-and-just-transition-steel-and-coal-sectors-2025-01-20_en
- Status: Open
- Funding type: Grant;
- Geographic focus: Horizon Europe associated countries; Europe;
- Public/Private: Public
- Stage focus: Seed;
- Applicant target: Startup;
Overview
The Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS) has opened its 2025 Big Tickets Call, offering a total budget of €135 million to fund groundbreaking research and innovation projects in the coal and steel sectors.
The RFCS Big Tickets Call is a game-changer for organizations aiming to lead innovation in these critical sectors while contributing to Europe’s climate neutrality goals by 2050. With substantial funding per project—ranging from €5 million to €18 million for large-scale demonstrators—this call provides an unparalleled opportunity to scale transformative solutions.
Funding Breakdown
- Steel Sector: €100 million allocated to projects focused on clean steel production, energy efficiency, circular economy, and carbon capture technologies,
- Coal Sector: €35 million dedicated to repurposing closed coal mines, methane emissions monitoring, water treatment, and recovery of critical raw materials.
- An additional standard annual call, worth €40 million, to cover both coal and steel is set to open in June 2025.
Eligibility
- Open to universities, research centers, companies, and consortia based in EU Member States or associated countries.
- Projects must achieve a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 7-8 by the end of the funding period.
Focus Areas for Funding
- Steel Sector Priorities
- CO₂-neutral iron ore reduction methods.
- Advanced steel alloys for specialized applications.
- Process integration technologies to improve energy efficiency and heat recovery.
- Circular economy solutions aimed at zero waste in steelmaking.
- Carbon capture from steel CO/CO₂ gases.
- Coal Sector Priorities
- Repurposing former coal mines and infrastructure.
- Recovery of critical raw materials from waste and spoil treatment.
- Monitoring and restoration of land and water tables in closed mines.
- Methane emissions processing for environmental protection.
How to Apply
Submit your proposal via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Ensure your project aligns with RFCS priorities and demonstrates strong potential for impact within the coal or steel sectors.
Last updated on 2025-04-08 19:53
Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS) FAQ
2 questions
The Green Tree Group (GTG) has recently been established to commercialise highly innovative technologies within the coal mine agglomeration and environmental materials space, these solutions appear to be well suited to this funding focus although they require further development and implementation. As GTG is newly formed and does not yet have a trading history or two years of accounts, does this automatically exclude us from being a potentially successful applicant of this grant funding?
April 16, 2025 - 16:05
Hi Jeremy,
Thank you for asking FundingTrip.
The current open calls specifically encourage collaborations with start-ups and SMEs. The expected EU contribution is eur 5 million to eur 25 million per project.
Applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement the projects and contribute their share. Organisations participating in several projects must have sufficient capacity to implement all these projects.
Applicants must have the know-how, qualifications and resources to successfully implement the projects and contribute their share (including sufficient experience in projects of comparable size and nature).
Let us know if you have further questions.
We also encourage you to create your company profile on FundingTrip and complete two forms to know about your funding readiness.
Regards,
The FundingTrip Team
Thank you for asking FundingTrip.
The current open calls specifically encourage collaborations with start-ups and SMEs. The expected EU contribution is eur 5 million to eur 25 million per project.
Applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement the projects and contribute their share. Organisations participating in several projects must have sufficient capacity to implement all these projects.
Applicants must have the know-how, qualifications and resources to successfully implement the projects and contribute their share (including sufficient experience in projects of comparable size and nature).
Let us know if you have further questions.
We also encourage you to create your company profile on FundingTrip and complete two forms to know about your funding readiness.
Regards,
The FundingTrip Team
April 29, 2025 - 14:48
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