Key funding opportunities for your clean energy project under the CETP 2026 call
The Clean Energy Transition Partnership allocates €84 million to support collaborative R&D&I initiatives aimed at decarbonisation
- June 23, 2026
- European project funding
At a glance: the essentials of this article
- International budget. Approximately €84 million has been allocated to energy transition projects.
- Eleven thematic areas. Projects may address topics such as hydrogen, batteries, renewable energy technologies or integrated energy systems.
- European consortia. Proposals must involve at least three partners from three different countries.
- Eligibility is critical. Each participant must also meet the requirements of their respective national or regional funding organisation.
- Defined timetable. The pre-proposal deadline is 8 October 2026. Invited projects will then be required to submit a full proposal by March 2027. Final funding decisions are expected in June 2027.
CETPartnership Joint Call 2026
The CETPartnership Joint Call 2026 is a transnational R&D&I funding opportunity under the Clean Energy Transition Partnership, co-funded by Horizon Europe. Its objective is to select collaborative projects that accelerate the transition to clean energy and contribute to achieving climate neutrality by 2050. The call has an indicative budget of around €84 million, provided by 35 national and regional funding organisations from approximately 30 countries. Funding is awarded through a decentralised model: each beneficiary partner receives support from its own national or regional funding body, in accordance with that organisation’s specific rules.
Objectives
The primary objective is to support transnational research, development and innovation projects capable of delivering scientific, technological, economic and societal impact. The call seeks to reduce fragmentation within the European energy innovation ecosystem, align national, regional and European priorities, and generate solutions with greater impact than purely national initiatives.
Projects are expected to contribute to decarbonisation, energy system resilience, security of supply, renewable energy integration, industrial competitiveness and social acceptance of new solutions. They should generate transferable and exploitable results, involving relevant stakeholders such as industry, public authorities, system operators, end users and need owners. Applicants must also address cross-cutting dimensions including open science, communication, exploitation of results, gender equality, ethics, the Do No Significant Harm (DNSH) principle, and the responsible use of generative AI tools.
Thematic areas
The call is organised into 11 thematic areas, known as modules, covering both technological and systemic challenges related to the energy transition:
- Integrated energy system resilience
- Energy system flexibility in scenarios with high renewable energy penetration
- Advanced renewable electricity generation technologies at the research stage
- Advanced renewable electricity generation technologies closer to innovation, demonstration and industrial deployment
- Carbon management in industry
- Hydrogen and renewable fuels
- Stationary battery technologies and systems for a climate-neutral industry and construction sector
- Heating and cooling technologies
- Integrated regional energy systems
- Integrated industrial energy systems
- Clean energy integration in the built environment
Each module defines its own international scope, expected impacts, consortium requirements, indicative budget, technology readiness levels (TRLs) and eligible activities. Selecting the appropriate module is therefore a strategic decision and should be assessed alongside the requirements of the relevant funding organisations, as additional national or regional conditions may also apply.
Beneficiaries and evaluation criteria
Proposals must be submitted by a transnational consortium. At a minimum, each consortium must include at least three eligible partners, including a coordinator, from three different countries participating in the selected module. At least two of these partners must come from EU Member States or countries associated with Horizon Europe.
No single partner may account for more than 60% of the project’s total effort, and partners from the same country may not collectively exceed 75% of the total effort, measured in person-months. Projects must start no later than 15 December 2027 and may last for a maximum of 36 months. As a general indication, supported projects typically run between 12 and 36 months and request total funding between €500,000 and €5 million, although specific modules and funding organisations may establish different ranges.