“PILOTING ACCESS TO SHARED RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURES AT PAN-EUROPEAN SCALE TO REINFORCE CAPACITIES AND SUPPORT THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE BLUE ECONOMY”

The Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership is launching the first call for access to Research Infrastructures [2025 TA Call to RIs], enabling applicants from the pan-European blue economy community to submit a proposal for utilising the Research Infrastructures (RIs) made available by providers partners of the Partnership. The call aims to implement the Partnership’s Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) by addressing key intervention areas, supporting internationalisation, and promoting Open Data and Open Science. It seeks to enhance innovation, align national investments with EU strategies, and improve operational efficiency by optimising the use and sharing of RIs.

The Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership offers a portfolio of 49 Research Infrastructure services through the integrated availability of the following typology of RIs:

• Research Vessels
• Fixed platforms, auxiliary devices and experimental stations
• Mobile platforms (AUVs, gliders, aircraft)
• Portable equipment
• Analytical labs and Test benches (pressure chambers, pools. calibration/inter-calibration bench, include sample analysis)
• High Performance Computing Centres

Visit the CATALOGUE of Research Infrastructures for more information.

The 2025 SBEP Transnational Access Call to Research Infrastructures is open to blue economy stakeholders’ communities (research institutions, private companies, NGOs, etc…), inside and outside the Partnership Consortium from countries belonging or associated to the Partnership and beyond. In their R&I proposal for the request of RI access, applicants must address the Intervention Areas of the Partnership 2024:

(1) Digital Twins of the Ocean at regional sub basin scale 
(2) Blue economy sectors, development of marine multi-use infrastructures 
(3) Planning and managing sea-uses at the regional level  
(4) Blue Bioresources

Proposals must address at least one geographical area among: Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea, Atlantic Ocean. If applicable, proposals must indicate regional areas (e.g. Arctic Ocean, Barents Sea, Celtic Sea, Adriatic Sea, Aegean Seas, etc., as far as they belong to one of the European Sea Basins cited above) or their scope must be proved to be relevant for one or more above mentioned geographical areas.

Applicants to the 2025 SBEP TA Call to RIs shall be employed by an organisation in any country of the world while the Project Leader PI shall be employed by an organisation in one of the Countries involved in the Partnership (Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine). To be eligible, a consortium must involve at least two members of the team employed by Institutions from two different countries and requesting access to a beneficiary making RIs available as providers.

Applications in this call must be impact-driven contributions to the transformation into a blue economy for a more resilient future and towards carbon neutrality targets, following an impact pathway approach. Each project should therefore describe it's impacts accordingly. The possible users of the outcomes of the projects should be identified in the application. Reflections on contribution to relevant initiatives will be appreciated as well as on stakeholders’ engagement, including a broad range of actors, i.e. industry partners, citizens, and policy makers.

A single step procedure will apply to this Access Call; the submission of proposals is mandatory. Applicants will have up to 29 April 2025, 15:00 CEST to submit their proposals.

Apply Here

Informative Webinar

A general information webinar will be organised on 28 February 2025 (14:00-16:00 CEST) to answer your questions regarding the call. Register through this link.