The funding call for the Clean Energy Transition Partnership (CETPartnership) programme for 2026 will open. CETP is a European partnership programme funded through Horizon Europe. The partnership programme aims to strengthen the clean energy transition and contribute to the European Union’s goal of becoming the first climate-neutral continent by 2050.
The programme’s themes cover a wide range of challenges from stand-alone technologies to integrated systems. The themes focus on energy conversion and storage as well as carbon processing and sinks. Other themes include storage technologies, technologies enabling demand response, and P2X technologies supporting electrification and cleaner industry.
The programme carries out annual international Joint Calls. The fifth Joint Call now opening involves more than 30 countries and regions. Read more: Clean Energy Transition Partnership
What can funding be applied for?
The call funds large-scale international research and development projects focusing on energy and the green transition. The international call modules, the call text and a summary of national funding criteria of participating countries are available on the CETP website. Read more: The CETPartnership Joint Call 2026 | CETPartnership
Finnish parties can apply for funding from Innovation Funding Agency Business Finland to participate in a joint project. Innovation Funding Agency Business Finland can grant funding to projects under all Call Modules. The maximum duration of funded research and development projects is 36 months.
Projects to be funded must create possibilities for strengthening companies’ competitiveness, renewal, and significant new international export business. Projects must demonstrate clear added value from collaboration.
Finnish parties in the consortium
Finnish companies and research organisations can participate in joint projects with their own research and development projects and apply for funding for their project from Business Finland. Finnish companies may participate in consortia either independently or together with other Finnish partners. Companies may participate either as Beneficiary Partners applying for funding or as Self-financed partners with an own research and development project. All parties that meet the criteria of the international call can participate in the consortia on a self-financed basis.
1. Companies applying for funding
Joint projects are expected to generate turnover only after the project has ended. Therefore, a company that is suitable for applying for funding:
- has secured total financing for the duration of the project
- has the capabilities to implement an ambitious R&D project
- aims to develop significant international business through the project
- fulfils Business Finland’s funding criteria for research and development projects
To ensure impact of funding, the project budget must be significant in relation to the scale of the applicant’s business; for SMEs, at least EUR 100,000.
Check the obstacles for granting the funding. If the company has previously received Business Finland funding, the proposed project must not jeopardise the achievement of the objectives of earlier funded projects. In addition, granting new funding must continue to be appropriate from the perspective of the company’s development.
2. Companies participating as Self-financed partners
A company participating as a Self-financed partner must demonstrably participate in the Joint Project with its own R&D project, the costs of which are covered by the company itself or through other funding. All participants, including self-financed companies, must report their participation and project costs in the CETPartnership Submission Platform in accordance with the instructions. Read more: CETPartnership Submission Platform
3. Research organisations applying for funding
If Finnish research organisations participate in the consortium, at least two Finnish export-oriented companies must also be included in the same international consortium with their own research and development project.
The share of public sector organisations in the total costs of the Finnish sub-consortium may not exceed 60%. Total costs include the budgets of Finnish partners’ projects, including the R&D projects of self-financed partners. Consequently, at least 40% of the total costs of the Finnish sub-consortium must originate from companies' R&D projects.
Business Finland funding
Business Finland is prepared to fund the participation of Finnish parties with EUR 5 million in Joint Projects in the 2026 call. Business Finland is indicatively prepared to grant funding from EUR 200,000 to EUR 800,000 per Finnish sub-consortium. Funding will be granted as a grant.
The following Business Finland funding services and their terms and conditions are applied:
- Research and development funding for individual companies: Read more: Research and development funding
- Co-Innovation funding for joint projects involving two or more companies and for joint consortia of companies and research organisations. Read more: Co-Innovation funding
Funding criteria are assessed based on the information available at the call deadlines.
In this call, companies can exceptionally also be granted a grant for the approved costs of an experimental development project. The funding level will be assessed and determined during the application process based on the share of industrial research costs in the project.
The call is two-stage
Stage 1: The first stage for pre-proposals opens on June 8th, 2026. All participants must submit their participation details and project costs via the CETPartnership Submission Platform in accordance with the instructions. Read more: CETPartnership Submission Platform
Pre-proposals must be submitted to the CETP Submission Platform by October 8th, 2026 at 14:00 CEST (15:00 Finnish time).
Please contact Business Finland well in advance of submitting your pre-proposal.
Stage 2: Only parties invited to Stage 2 based on the pre-proposal may submit a full proposal.
Invited parties must submit their applications both to the CETP Submission Platform and to Business Finland's funding e-service by March 11th, 2027 at 14:00 CEST (15:00 Finnish time).
Failure to meet the deadline will result in rejection of the application.
Participating countries jointly decide on the projects to be funded based on external evaluation and available funding. Business Finland follows this joint decision.