The European Union has set ambitious goals for reducing net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 55 % by 2030 and achieving a climate-neutral and circular economy by 2050. One of the largest funding programmes to demonstrate low-carbon technologies is the Innovation Fund. It aims to advance solutions to decarbonise European industry and support its transition to climate neutrality while supporting its competitiveness. Spinverse’s project proposal preparation services also include expertise in GHG calculations.
The revenues for the Innovation Fund are provided by the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) from the monetisation of €530 million ETS allowances.
Projects related to four categories can apply for funding
- Innovative low-carbon technologies and processes in energy-intensive industries, including carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon capture and utilisation (CCU)
- Innovative renewable energy generation
- Energy storage
- Low-carbon solutions for mobility (maritime, aviation, road transport).
Evaluation criteria
Project applications are evaluated based on effectiveness in greenhouse gas emissions avoidance, degree of innovation, project maturity, replicability, and cost efficiency. GHG emission avoidance corresponds to 20 % of the total score of the evaluation. Points can be received from:
- Absolute emission avoidance (measured in tons of CO2 equivalent compared to a reference scenario)
- Relative emission avoidance (measured as % of emission avoidance compared to a reference scenario)
- Quality of the calculation.
To calculate the absolute emission avoidance, the emissions caused by the project activities during a 10-year period are compared to the equivalent emissions of a reference scenario representing European average practices used to make the product that will be substituted (more fossil-based). The GHG calculation methodology is specified for each category.
In addition, the cost efficiency ratio also corresponds to 20 % of the total score of the evaluation. It is expressed as the ratio of the requested grant and the absolute GHG emission avoidance. Projects providing largest emission avoidance compared to the grant requested will reach the highest scoring.
Secure high scores in your Innovation Fund proposal by careful GHG emission avoidance calculations
In the latest Innovation Fund call round in 2024, Spinverse supported several customers in preparing their funding proposals. Six of them got a positive funding decision, with a considerable total GHG emission avoidance of 19,5 million tonnes CO2 equivalent. Spinverse’s guidance on the calculation of the absolute and relative GHG emission avoidance resulted in high scores for the criterion Quality of the calculation, reaching on average 4,8 out of 5 points achievable for this criterion.
Points to consider from the GHG emission avoidance point of view when starting to prepare a proposal
Make sure you have a clear view of the project system in terms of material and energy inputs and outputs:
- What are the products of the project? What kind of products do they replace?
- Are there valuable side streams that can be utilised as raw materials of other products?
- What kind of inputs (material and energy) are needed? Can they be sourced from low-emission sources?
- What is the schedule of the project? How long of a ramp-up period is needed to reach full production capacity?
Are you planning to accelerate your sustainable net-zero projects with Innovation Fund? Get in touch with our funding experts today!