EU grants EUR 314m to innovative companies to combat virus, support recovery

The EU Commission announced the award Monday of nearly EUR 166 million to companies set to combat the coronavirus pandemic, and another EUR 148 million to fund Europe's economic recovery plan.

The funding, include money from the European Innovation Council Accelerator Pilot to fight the pandemic, brings the total investment from the EU's research and innovation programme Horizon 2020 to EUR 314 million in this round.

"The enormous talent and breakthrough ideas of innovative European companies give us hope," said the Innovation and Research Commissioner Mariya Gabriel: "Our increased support to the European Innovation Council will unlock their potential so that we can better tackle the coronavirus and support our recovery."

The selected 36 companies that will contribute to the fight against the coronavirus will work on pioneering projects, such as on expanding the production of bio-decontamination wipes, developing ventilation monitoring systems that provide first aiders with real-time feedback on the quality of the ventilation given to the patient, developing an antibody platform to treat severe cases of infection, and many more.

Furthermore, 139 companies tackling the coronavirus that could not receive funding in this round due to budget limitations have received the newly introduced COVID-19 Seal of Excellence, in recognition of the value of their proposal and in order to help them attract support from other funding sources.

An additional 36 companies, set to support the recovery plan for Europe, will work across a multitude of sectors and projects, which include for example the development of stronger and taller wind turbine towers made from wood modules, with the potential to massively reduce wind energy costs, an organic fertilizer production system, and a blockchain-based solution for sustainable recycling practices of manufacturers. And, another 679 Seals of Excellence were awarded to highquality proposals who passed the EIC funding criteria, but could not be funded due to limited budget.

Almost 4,000 start-ups and small and medium businesses applied to the EIC Accelerator pilot in March, of which over 1,400 proposed innovations relevant to the coronavirus outbreak. This is why an extra €150 million was recently allocated to this funding round, bringing the combined total to over €314 million.

The start-ups and SMEs selected for support come from 16 countries, including 12 EU Member States, the UK and 3 associated countries.