The European Commission today
announces the first results of its new €3 billion SME Instrument,
launched under Horizon 2020 to help innovative small firms get ideas
from the lab to the market. In total, 155 SMEs from 21 countries (EU
Member States or countries associated to Horizon 2020) will each receive
€50,000 to finance feasibility studies to develop their innovation
strategy. In addition, SMEs can benefit from up to three days of
business coaching.
Spanish SMEs were particularly
successful in the first round, with 39 proposals selected, followed
closely by SMEs from the UK and Italy. In total, there were 2,666
applications for the first grants. Successful applicants will be
formally notified in August. Thereafter, their names will be publicly
announced by the Executive Agency for SMEs (EASME), which manages the programme.
Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, said: "The
response to the new SME Instrument is encouraging. There is clearly
demand out there for this kind of support. I hope many of the business
plans being financed will mature to become real products and services,
generating growth and jobs for our economies. We need our champions of
innovation to grow!"
The SME Instrument is a key
element of the funding for small businesses available under Horizon
2020. Worth around €3 billion over seven years, it offers fast and
simple grants for business innovation feasibility studies (Phase 1) and
demonstration projects (Phase 2). Investment-mature concepts can in
addition benefit from business development advice and other support
services (Phase 3).
Through the SME Instrument the
European Union wants to finance the most innovative small companies,
with a high growth potential. The application process is easy but only
the very best projects can expect to receive funding. Eligible topics are set out in the Horizon 2020 Work Programme on ‘Innovation in SMEs’.
Applications can be submitted at
any time but are evaluated four times each year. Today's results
concern applications received by the first cut-off for Phase 1 grants on
18 June 2014. The next cut-off dates for evaluation are 24 September
2014 for Phase 1 and 9 October for Phase 2.
Around 645 projects (under Phase 1 and 2) should be funded in 2014, rising to 670 in 2015.