IRISH ORGANISATIONS SECURE €836 MILLION IN HORIZON EUROPE RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FUNDING SINCE 2021

  • 1,295 projects involving 487 individual Irish organisations have secured funding since 2021
  • Ireland ranks ahead of its 1.6% target having already secured €836m from the €39 billion awarded to date
  • Marking the halfway point, Enterprise Ireland hosts Horizon Europe Impact Conference

Dublin, 5 December 2024 — Irish organisations have been awarded more than €836 million in funding from the EU’s Horizon Europe 2021 -2027 research and innovation programme. The current seven-year programme aims to support organisations to tackle global challenges, conduct groundbreaking multidisciplinary research and boost the EU’s industrial competitiveness and growth.

Ireland’s overall national drawdown target is €1.5bn or 1.6% of Horizon Europe’s €93.5bn budget from 2021-2027. To date, Irish organisations have been granted €836.4m which equates to 2.14% of the €39 billion awarded so far, showing that Ireland is tracking ahead of its target at just past the halfway point of the programme.

The €836 million secured by Irish organisations is distributed across 1,295 projects involving 487 individual Irish organisations and businesses. Almost half of those 487 organisations (47%) have been awarded more than a quarter of a million euro, while one in five have secured greater than €1 million.

Successful applicants from Ireland are drawn from a range of sectors and include higher education institutions, research performing organisations, public organisations and SMEs. 217 Irish SMEs have been awarded €233m under Horizon Europe and Ireland ranks at number four amongst the 27 EU member states for SME participation in projects.

The top three biggest funding successes for Ireland under the Horizon Europe framework programme areas are:

1) the European Research Council’s grants for academic researchers – €131m

2) the Digital, Industry & Space programme area – €122m

3) the Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment programme area – €121m

The figures were announced today as more than 600 delegates including EU member state representatives, policy makers and industry leaders from the research and business community attend the Horizon Europe Impact Conference at the Convention Centre in Dublin. This in-person conference will highlight Ireland’s success in Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe by showcasing the benefits that participation from small and large enterprises, academic researchers and other stakeholders has produced.

 

Speaking at the conference, Colm O’Reardon, Secretary General at the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science said, “This is a welcome opportunity to take stock at the halfway point of Horizon Europe, to reflect on our successes so far and look forward to Ireland leading and participating in impactful research and innovation projects with our international partners.”

Enterprise Ireland leads the Horizon Europe National Support Network which aims to promote and secure funding for Irish research projects. Opening the conference Micol Martinelli, National Director for Horizon Europe in Ireland, welcomed the European delegation to Dublin and commended the talent and calibre of innovation coming out of Ireland in recent years.

“Ireland’s overall success in the Horizon Europe programme, supported by Enterprise Ireland and nine other government agencies and departments, shines a spotlight on the innovation capability of Irish organisations which are competing and winning on a pan-European level. This EU funding is instrumental in providing critical support to enable researchers to further develop their innovations which will influence and strengthen EU policy for the good of future generations.

“However, funding awards are not the only success story – the collaboration and building of partnerships and relationships with organisations in other countries is a key driver of impact for research and innovation overall. To unleash Ireland’s full potential, we want to encourage and facilitate newcomers and to build on Irish participation for the remainder of the Horizon Europe programme and beyond.”

The Horizon Europe Impact Conference will cover the three pillars of Horizon Europe’s focus including research excellence, researcher mobility and talent; global challenges and European industry competitiveness; and innovative Europe, which will focus on starting, scaling and financing companies, particularly deeptech companies.

Conference delegates will hear from industry and academic leaders and senior figures from the European Commission including Mairead McGuiness former European Commissioner, Henriette Van Eijl, Deputy Director for Health and Societal Transitions, European Commission and Luke O’Neill, Professor of Biochemistry in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College Dublin.