EC, Industry to Invest €3.2B in Factories, Energy Efficiency, 'Green' Cars
July 20, 2009 // Published as a news service by IHS
The European Commission (EC) and industry announced the first round of research "calls for proposals" to invest €268 million in three market areas to spark economic recovery and make Europe's economy more sustainable and knowledge-based.
The projects will cover the following areas:
- Manufacturing technologies, materials and processes to produce more, while consuming less material, less energy, and producing less waste.
- More energy-efficient buildings, including new constructions and greening of existing buildings, new materials and construction techniques.
- Greener cars and smarter transport systems, including electrification of road and urban transport, and research into hybrid vehicle technologies.
A total of €3.2 billion was earmarked for European public-private partnerships (PPPs) dedicated to developing new technologies in manufacturing, construction and the automotive sectors.
From 2010 to 2013, this research money will be allocated through three public-private partnerships, with half of the funds coming from industry and half from the EC through the Seventh Framework Programme for R&D. The first cross-thematic calls for proposals are part of these three PPPs:
- Factories of the future (€1.2 billion) - An initiative to help European Union (EU) manufacturers, especially small to medium-sized businesses, adapt to global competitive pressures by increasing their knowledge and use of the technologies of the future.
- Energy-efficient buildings (€1 billion) - An initiative to promote green technologies and development of energy-efficient systems and materials in European buildings.
- Green cars (€1 billion) - An initiative emphasizing the development of renewable and non-polluting energy sources, safety and traffic fluidity in the automotive field. "Greening" is necessary to achieve EU and world targets for emissions reductions.
It is foreseen that these collaborations between the EC and the industry will foster global competitiveness for European businesses, bring down the excessive energy consumption of Europe's buildings that make up one-third of EU's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and develop new and sustainable forms of road transport.
The three planned partnerships are part of the EC's European Economy Recovery Plan endorsed by the European Council in December 2008, which aims to promote the convergence of public interest and industry commitment for research.
"It is now recognized that investing in R&D is not a luxury when times are easy, but a necessity when times are hard. If Europe makes 'smart' investments in strategic sectors today, this will create jobs and sustainable growth tomorrow," said Janez Potočnik, EC commissioner for science and research.
"Through these innovative partnerships, the Commission and industry join forces to foster the development of clean technologies and to position Europe as a leader in this field. The early launch of the calls also proves our capacity to act together rapidly to respond to the research demands of the European Economic Recovery Plan."
Viviane Reding, EC commissioner for information society and media, said, "Joint investment by the Commission and industry represents an important step towards a knowledge-based and low-carbon EU economy. Achieving research excellence and combining efforts are crucial for making Europe emerge from the crisis as a strong, more sustainable and more competitive society. Research in Information and Communication Technologies can play a particularly useful role in developing the tools for helping Europe's economic recovery and the greening of our European economy."
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Source: European Commission (EC).