EUREKA Instruments [Network projects, European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars and Innowwide, Clusters]

EUREKA supports the development of rapidly marketable innovative products, processes and services across all technological sectors through collaborative Industrial Research or Experimental Development projects up to 36 months in duration involving partners from Malta and other EUREKA countries.  Further details are in EUREKA brief. 

Participation in Network projects, European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars and Innowwide, Clusters amongst other EUREKA instruments raises participants’ international profiles through EUREKA label award, facilitates growth and access to finance for companies involved, offers high degree of flexibility and bottom-up approach to project generation with greater chance of project proposal success.

Malta participants in collaborative projects endorsed by EUREKA Network are supported through through Research and Development incentive.  

EUREKA instruments have different requirements, evaluation parameters and processes applicable. 

National review of Malta participant involvement is carried out along with the evaluation processes at EUREKA level.

Contact National Project Coordinator on 22477624 or [email protected] for further assistance.

Network Projects

At least 1 independent participant from another EUREKA country is required to join Malta participant to form the Network project.

The first stage involves submission of an R&D Pre-proposal Form to r&[email protected] to verify the suitability of the project idea.

Malta accepts Network Projects applications on ongoing basis unless they form part of the multilateral call with a specified deadline.

Joint Network Project form to be filled in with the international partner/s is to be submitted to EUREKA network via EUREKA application portal.  

European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars and Innowwide

Eurostars

Eurostars is part of the European Partnership on Innovative SMEs. The partnership is co-funded by the European Union through Horizon Europe.

The lead partner in European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars project should be an innovative SME with the ambition to collaborate on R&D and innovation with international partners, to develop new products, processes, and services for European and global markets.

To be innovative, SMEs do not need a proven track record of R&D activities, but have to comply with the EU law SME definition (EU recommendation 2003/361).

The organisations which are not eligible to receive public funding due to national rules and procedures still have the opportunity to participate in the project provided that they fully self-finance their part of the project.

European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars eligibility guidelines  and https://www.eurekanetwork.org/countries/malta/eurostars/eligibility outline further criteria applicable to European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars projects.

The programme has two calls a year.

2024 application deadlines:

14 March by 14.00 CEST

12 September by 14.00 CEST

The process starts with the joint application to be filled in with the international partner/s via European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars web portal. 

Concurrently Malta-based participants are to submit the following documentation to Malta Enterprise in order to be considered for funding, i.e. this is to be done at the same time as submitting a European Partnership on Innovative SMEs / Eurostars application:

• a Financial Summary using Malta Enterprise's template and signed by a certified public accountant
• an Undertaking in Difficulty declaration using Malta Enterprise's template and signed by a certified public accountant (required if your company has been established for more than three years at the time of application)
• a business plan (required if your company has been established for less than three years or employing fewer than five FTEs at the time of application) 
• your company's memorandum and articles of association
• an enterprise size declaration (for the current or previous year) filled in on Malta Enterprise's client portal on your business entity profile (see, user manual)

The above documents are to be submitted to r&[email protected]

Innowwide

Innowide is funded by the European Union as part of the European Partnership on Innovative SMEs.

It supports SMEs going global and encourages taking R&D to markets all over the world.

An innovative SME can choose a target region and country, find a local counterpart and apply to Innowwide for a grant of 60,000 euro to assess the viability of its research or commercial ambitions in international markets via a market feasibility project over a six-month period.

Eureka network runs this programme centrally through one call a year.

Clusters

These are industry led initiatives with a typical cluster project having numerous and diverse participants from 3-4 countries to develop technologies of key importance for European competitiveness. 

Clusters use dedicated websites, issue specific calls and organise information days to facilitate project preparation.

Applications with the international partners are to be submitted as per selected cluster requirements. 

Malta participants in EUREKA projects will also be guided re submission of R&D National Application via Malta Enterprise client portal, which focuses on their activities within the envisaged joint endeavour. 

 

For further details and forms applicable to Malta participants in Eureka projects on a national level refer Research and Development