RFCS Steel Pilot and Demonstration Projects
Funds pilot and demonstration-scale steel installations working toward near-zero-carbon steelmaking, under the Research Fund for Coal & Steel.
Applicants submit the Standard Application Form (RFCS) through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal by the single-stage deadline. This topic carried an indicative EUR 7.62 million share of the wider RFCS-2025 call, alongside a separate steel research-project topic and matching coal topics under the same call document.
This topic funds pilot and demonstration projects under the Research Fund for Coal & Steel's steel research objectives in Council Decision 2008/376/EC: near-zero-carbon steelmaking and finishing processes, advanced steel grades, resource conservation and circular economy, and workforce management for the transition. Each proposal must assess its expected industrial, economic, social and environmental benefits. Work can address breakthrough near-zero-carbon iron- and steel-making routes, process optimisation through automation, AI and big data, new steel grades and longer-lasting steel products, or resource-conservation topics such as recycling obsolete steel, treating waste and by-products, and cutting pollution around a plant. Proposals can also cover the workforce side of the transition: building the skills needed for new near-zero-carbon processes and improving health, safety and ergonomics on the shop floor.
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