Support to the BRIDGE initiative

The main goal of this opportunity is to strengthen collaboration and knowledge sharing among projects working on smart grids, energy storage, digitalisation, and energy systems for islands. It aims to accelerate innovation by enabling the exchange of best practices, field experience, and lessons learned. The initiative also seeks to deliver coordinated recommendations to policymakers and support research and innovation actions across Europe. Projects are expected to help inform and shape European energy policies through their results and feedback. This funding is open to eligible countries as outlined in the Horizon Europe Work Programme.

• Provide organisational and logistical coordination support to the EU’s BRIDGE initiative (overseeing working groups, task forces, and governance processes).

• Update and maintain the BRIDGE membership database, including project affiliations and stakeholder contact details.

• Produce and publish annual materials such as brochures, expert reports, policy briefings, and other thematic communications.

• Maintain the online presence and communication channels of BRIDGE (website, newsletter, social media).

• Structure and present evidence-based insights on innovation and technology trends in smart energy systems to support policy-making (especially DG Energy).

• Benchmark and consolidate learnings from Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe smart energy projects to strengthen BRIDGE's role as an EU reference platform.

Examples:

• A project connecting smart grid solutions across several European countries to share best practices and data.
• An initiative to test and demonstrate new energy storage technologies on European islands.
• A digital platform that collects and analyzes lessons learned from multiple Horizon-funded energy projects to inform policy recommendations.

• Personnel costs for project staff
• Costs for equipment and materials needed for project activities
• Travel and accommodation costs for project meetings and knowledge exchange
• Subcontracting necessary for project implementation
• Costs for organizing workshops, seminars, and events
• Communication and dissemination activities
• Data management and IT infrastructure
• Project management and coordination costs
• Costs for reporting and evaluation

Restrictions: All costs must fit within the lump sum funding model defined by the Horizon Europe Programme.

• Budget for this Call: 1.000.000€
• Number of Grants attributed: 1

• Must be a consortium of at least three independent legal entities established in three different eligible countries, at least one of which is in an EU Member State.
• All partners must be based in eligible countries (EU Member States or Horizon-associated countries) and demonstrate financial and operational capacity in accordance with Horizon Europe Annex B and C.
• Project must provide professional and logistical support services to the BRIDGE initiative, including organizing governance meetings, onboarding new projects, maintaining membership databases, and producing policy reports, brochures, studies, and briefings for DG Energy and SET Plan decision-makers.
• Strong preference is given to consortia with experience in energy system R&I, smart grids, storage, islands, digitalisation projects, and professional communications or event coordination (e.g., SMEs or Brussels-based networks).
• Standard Horizon Europe exclusions, ethical integrity, conflict-of-interest, and compliance checks apply, as specified in General Annex B–C.