EIC Accelerator: €314 million awarded to innovative businesses to combat coronavirus and support recovery

The European Commission has announced the allocation of €314 million to innovative companies through the EIC Accelerator programme for the March 2020 cut-off. Specifically, almost €166 million has been awarded to 36 companies for projects focused on combating the coronavirus, while over €148 million has been awarded to another 36 companies whose projects will contribute to the plan for Europe's recovery.

From a statistical perspective, there were almost 4,000 applications for this cut-off. Of the 72 beneficiary companies, 46 will receive support in the form of equity.

The companies selected to combat the coronavirus are working on projects across four sub-categories: testing, treatment, prevention, and other coronavirus-relevant innovations. Winning projects include, for example, an initiative to increase the production of biodecontamination wipes, the development of ventilation quality monitoring systems that provide real-time information to emergency responders, the development of an antibody-based platform for treating severe infection cases, and many others.

It should also be noted that 139 companies that were unable to receive funding in this category due to budget constraints have been awarded the recently introduced Covid-19 Seal of Excellence, in recognition of the value of their proposals and to assist them in securing support from other funding sources.

There are no Italian companies among the beneficiaries in this category, while the countries with the highest number of beneficiaries are Denmark, the Netherlands and Ireland (5 each).

The 36 companies supporting the plan for Europe's recovery were selected for projects such as a production system for organic fertiliser, a blockchain-based solution for sustainable recycling practices by manufacturers, and the development of more robust, taller wind turbine towers made from wooden modules, which could drastically reduce wind energy costs. In this category, 679 Seals of Excellence were awarded to high-quality proposals that met the funding criteria but could not be financed due to limited budget.

In this category, there is one beneficiary company from Lombardy, Wise Srl based in Cologno Monzese, while the countries with the highest number of beneficiaries are France and the Netherlands (4 each).

The updated list of beneficiaries can be downloaded below.

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