The Council of the EU published the decision, dated 29 June, to establish the new Research Programme of the Research Fund for Coal and Steel, along with the multiannual technical and financial guidelines for managing the fund’s assets, in the EU Official Journal on 17 July.
The fund was created in 2002 after the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) Treaty expired, and was financed by interest on remaining ECSC assets.
It supports research and innovation in the steel sector and backs a “green and just transition” in Europe’s coal-mining regions. Under the reform, the programme is extended until 2034, with up to €120 million a year available for projects, amounting to around €800m in total investment.
The new framework aligns funding rates with Horizon Europe, the EU’s main research programme, allowing industry participants to receive up to 70% in EU funding and up to 100% for SMEs, start-ups and academic institutions.
