EC invests €2.5 million in blue growth technologies

 
The European Commission (EC) is investing over €7.5 million under the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund to boost innovation, growth and jobs in the marine and maritime sectors, with €2.52 million designated for wave and tidal technologies.

The investment earmarked under the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund will comprise three calls for proposal in areas of skills, creativity and technology.

Under the Blue Technology call, the Commission is putting up a total of €2.52 million to encourage transnational public-private partnerships that will support the transfer of new technologies and research results into commercial applications and coordinate strategic investment at sea-basin level with the development of joint roadmaps.

The consortium has to have a common interest in a specific blue growth related technology, domain or value chain, such as wave, tidal or offshore wind energy, blue biotechnology, aquaculture, coastal and maritime tourism.

The call is aimed at technologies at technology readiness level 5 or higher (TRL 5 marks tested/validated applications in relevant concrete environment).

The specific roadmaps shall include an investment plan that will deliver a set of bankable/ready-to-invest demonstration projects for new technologies, industry applications, processes or services within the targeted blue growth area, it is stated in the call.

The aim is that these concrete demonstration projects will be readily available for industry and finance institutions to move swiftly to the implementation stage at the end of the project.

Karmenu Vella, European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said: “With these calls for proposals, the European Commission is taking another step to create the conditions for blue growth in Europe. We are developing skills. We are rewarding creativity. We are boosting technology. Armed with these assets, I am convinced that the European maritime industry can become a global pioneer of blue growth.”

The deadline for submitting applications is set for September 30, 2016.

Under the Blue Careers call, €3.45 million will be made available to equip job-seekers with useful skills necessary for the marine and maritime economy, and €1.7 million is made available to promote innovative ‘laboratories’, where students and recent postgraduates team up with experienced tutors from the local business community and the public sector to address maritime and marine issues as part of the Blue Labs call.