EU Just Transition Fund — Ireland (Midlands)

EU Just Transition Fund — Midlands Community and Enterprise Grants

Funds research teams and institutions for EU Just Transition Fund Midlands Community and Enterprise in energy systems and climate technology.

Ireland's EU Just Transition Fund (JTF) allocates €169 million across the 2021–2027 EU programming period to support the Midlands region's transition away from peat extraction and peat-fired electricity generation. The Community and Enterprise Grants Scheme strand provides individual grants of up to €300,000 to community and voluntary organisations, not-for-profit bodies, and small and medium-sized enterprises operating in the eligible Midlands counties: Laois, Longford, Offaly, Westmeath, Roscommon, and qualifying sub-county areas within Galway, Kildare, and Tipperary. The Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly (EMRA) serves as Managing Authority for the Irish JTF programme, with Pobal acting as scheme administrator for grant processing.

Eligible project activities focus on enterprise development, energy transition, and community economic resilience in communities directly impacted by the end of peat production and the closure of Bord na Móna operations and ESB peat-fired power stations. Calls open on a rolling or multiple-round basis within the overarching 2021–2027 programme period; individual call windows and specific eligibility criteria for each round are announced by EMRA. Both community organisations and SMEs must operate within the defined Midlands area to qualify; geographic eligibility is strictly enforced.

Applicants should contact EMRA directly to confirm whether a current call is open, as no centralised national deadline calendar governs individual JTF rounds. Strong applications will demonstrate direct connection to affected peat-economy communities, clear job creation or economic diversification outcomes, and alignment with the Just Transition Fund's obligation under EU Regulation 2021/1056 to address the social and environmental impacts of the fossil-fuel transition. Match-funding requirements should be verified with EMRA at the application stage, as these may vary by round.