The Innovation Fund is the largest grant programme for CO₂-reducing / low-carbon technologies in the EU. The Innovation Fund has € 40 billion available between 2020-2030 and opens regular calls and auctions every year. The programme supports innovation in energy-intensive industries, energy industries (renewable energy, energy storage, CCUS) and Net-zero mobility and buildings.

Quickly navigate to:

• Innovation Fund calls and auctions in 2026
• IF26 Net Zero Technologies call
• IF26 SME call
• New: IF26 Maritime call
• IF26 Industrial Heat Auction
• IF26 Hydrogen Auction
• Our experience with the Innovation Fund
• Example project: BioCirc – RECLAIM
• About the Innovation Fund
• More information or interested in applying?

Innovation Fund calls and auctions in 2026

The Innovation Fund 2026 (IF26) round offers five funding opportunities: three calls for grants and two auctions. The planned opening dates are indicative and may change:

IF26 Net Zero Technologies call

The Net-Zero Technologies call is the Innovation Fund’s main funding instrument. It supports innovative decarbonisation and clean-tech projects across four topics:

• General decarbonisation (large-scale): projects with CAPEX above €100 million
• General decarbonisation (small and medium-scale): projects with CAPEX between €2.5 million and €100 million
• Clean-tech manufacturing and critical raw materials: projects with CAPEX above €2.5 million that manufacture components for renewable energy, energy storage, heat pumps and hydrogen production, or that strengthen Europe’s supply security of critical raw materials
• Pilots: highly innovative projects for deep decarbonisation with CAPEX above €2.5 million

Projects are assessed on five criteria: greenhouse gas emission avoidance, degree of innovation, project maturity, replicability and cost efficiency. Projects that are eligible for the new SME or Maritime calls cannot apply under the Net-Zero Technologies call, unless they are pilots.

The call is expected to open in December 2026, with a deadline in April 2027. The budget has not yet been announced.

IF26 SME call

The IF26 round introduces a separate call for SMEs with small-scale projects, with CAPEX between €2.5 million and €20 million. Its aim is to make the Innovation Fund more accessible to SMEs, including those without previous experience of EU grant applications. SMEs therefore no longer compete directly with large industrial projects.

The call has a total budget of €200 million and two application rounds:

• Round 1: publication in December 2026, deadline at the end of March 2027
• Round 2: publication in April 2027, deadline at the end of September 2027

New: IF26 Maritime call

For the first time, the Innovation Fund will open a dedicated call for the maritime sector. It aims to increase participation by maritime projects, with rules better suited to the sector’s technological and financial challenges. Expected features include:

• specific requirements on vessel registration and calls at European ports
• a dedicated methodology for calculating emission reductions

The opening date and budget have not yet been announced.

IF26 Industrial Heat Auction

Following the IF25 Pilot Heat Auction, which was announced under the Clean Industrial Deal, the EC is launching its second auction for decarbonising industrial process heat: the IF26 Industrial Heat Auction. Eligible technologies fall into three categories:

• Electrified technologies, such as heat pumps, thermal storage, plasma torches and electric boilers
• Direct renewable heat from solar thermal or geothermal sources
• Nuclear technologies, such as small modular reactors, which are eligible for the first time

The auction is open to projects of all sizes from every industrial sector across the European Economic Area. It has a budget of €1 billion and opens in December 2026.

IF26 Hydrogen Auction 

Since 2023, the Innovation Fund has included auctions for renewable hydrogen production under the European Hydrogen Bank. Bidders submit a fixed premium per kilogram of hydrogen produced. This premium bridges the gap between production costs and the price buyers are currently willing to pay.

The fourth Hydrogen Auction, the IF26 Hydrogen Auction, has a budget of up to €500 million, divided over two topics:

• €350 million for the production of renewable hydrogen (RFNBO)
• €150 million for the production of RFNBO hydrogen and/or electrolytic low-carbon hydrogen

The auction opens in December 2026, with a deadline in February 2027.

Our experience with the Innovation Fund

Hezelburcht has supported organisations with their Innovation Fund applications since the programme was launched in 2020. Over the years, our specialists have built up in-depth knowledge of what the European Commission looks for. This goes beyond an innovative technology: it also includes convincing evidence of greenhouse gas emission avoidance, project maturity, scalability and cost efficiency. That experience continues to pay off, including three selected projects in the 2025 Net-Zero Technologies call, in which only around one in five applications succeeded.

Example project: BioCirc – RECLAIM

BioCirc, a Danish circular bioeconomy company and one of the world’s largest biomethane producers, is developing RECLAIM in Denmark. RECLAIM will be Europe’s first fully integrated biocircular renewable energy cluster. The project combines a green methanol plant, an electrolyser for renewable hydrogen, onshore wind turbines and an upgraded biogas plant that runs on locally sourced agricultural residues. Because these technologies are linked in a single circular system, RECLAIM is expected to reduce CO₂ emissions by around 70,000 tonnes a year and to strengthen regional energy security. Hezelburcht supported BioCirc throughout its Innovation Fund application. We helped position the project within the programme’s objectives and substantiate its contribution to Europe’s climate and energy goals. The application was successful, and RECLAIM has been awarded Innovation Fund funding. Read the full case here.

About the Innovation Fund

The Innovation Fund is one of Europe’s largest programmes focused on demonstrating innovative CO₂-reducing / low carbon technologies. Its purpose is to support the European Commission’s  (EC) vision of a climate neutral Europe by 2050 by bringing the most successful and innovative technologies to the market. The Fund offers financial support in abating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, making the world cleaner and more sustainable. The Innovation Fund has € 40 billion budget available between 2020-2030.

Core value: Emission avoidance within projects

The programme’s core value is to avoid gas emissions. The emissions avoidance calculations will likely be compared to reference scenarios either based on the benchmarks within the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) or from similar projects. It is therefore important your project delivers at least 75% of the emissions avoidance calculated in order to receive the full grant amount.

Support in applying for Innovation Fund?

Interested in the Innovation Fund? Hezelburcht has extensive experience in applying for the Innovation Fund! Our specialists would be pleased to support you. Please do not hesitate to contact us via info@hezelburcht.com, call us 088 495 20 00 or fill in the form for an introduction meeting: