Luxembourg strengthens position in Horizon Europe

With a budget of €95.5 billion, the Horizon Europe programme is becoming an important tool for promoting research and innovation in Europe. Luxembourg, with 337 projects, has already raised €199.3 million - almost as much as it raised over the entire seven-year period of Horizon 2020.

Private companies in Luxembourg have received more than 50% of financing, well above the European average of 33%. According to Stefano Pozzi Mucelli, head of European finance at Luxinnovation, this is a unique feature of Luxembourg. "It shows a high level of activity and willingness of businesses to co-operate," he noted. The rest of the funding went to public research institutions (€83.09m) and other organisations (€11.6m).

Among the leaders in terms of funding are the sectors of digital, industry and space (Cluster 4, €60 million), climate, energy and mobility (Cluster 5), and health (Cluster 1).

Experts shared valuable advice at Horizon Europe Day, including the importance of starting early and building consortia. "You need to start well before the deadline: to form a team and create a common strategy," emphasised Professor Jan Lagerwal from the University of Luxembourg.

Organisations such as Alzheimer Europe play an important role in communicating and engaging with stakeholders, including patients, their families and regulators. And Emmanuel Defey, a researcher at the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, explained how the use of multiple programmes - ERC and EIC - is helping to achieve more ambitious goals in his energy conversion projects.

Luxinnovation is actively involved in discussions on Horizon Europe's 2025-2026 work programmes and assists local participants at all stages of projects. Among the innovations in future calls for proposals are shorter application descriptions, increased budgets and two-stage application, making the process easier for participants.