KMU-innovativ: Energy Efficiency, Climate Protection and Climate Adaptation

The "KMU-innovativ: Energy Efficiency, Climate Protection and Climate Adaptation" program primarily targets small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Germany. It supports individual and collaborative projects, with universities, research institutions, associations, societies, and larger companies also able to participate as partners in collaborative projects. The overarching goal is to strengthen the innovation potential of German SMEs in future-relevant technology areas and to promote the development of innovative solutions for climate protection and climate adaptation.

Funding is provided for high-risk, pre-competitive, and cross-technology research and development projects that can be assigned to the technology area of "Energy Efficiency, Climate Protection and Climate Adaptation". The projects must demonstrate high scientific-technical and economic relevance and contribute to the future market positioning of the participating companies. Furthermore, a clear economic exploitation perspective is required, which ideally achieves broad impact and qualitatively, and where possible quantitatively, demonstrates climate protection and climate adaptation relevance.

Funding is generally provided as a non-repayable grant for a duration of normally up to two years. Funding rates vary depending on the applicant and the type of research activity. For universities and non-university institutions, up to 100 percent of eligible expenses are possible. Commercial enterprises normally receive 50 percent of their eligible costs, with SMEs potentially receiving a bonus under certain conditions.

The funding guideline sets out specific conditions for applicants and project proposals. These include compliance with state aid regulations, particularly the EU General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER), and the requirement for a business establishment in Germany. In the case of collaborative projects, clear cooperation agreements and significant SME participation are prerequisites. Projects must also exhibit a high scientific-technical and economic risk and enable exploitation in Germany, the EEA, or Switzerland.

The application procedure is designed in two stages, initially involving the submission of project outlines, followed by an invitation to submit formal funding applications if the outline is positively evaluated. Submissions are made via specific online portals and include detailed requirements for the content and form of the documents. The evaluation is based on scientific-technical, economic, and exploitation criteria.

The funding is based on a specific guideline from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the relevant provisions of German budgetary law and EU state aid law, particularly the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER). These legal bases ensure the legitimacy of the program and define the framework conditions for granting subsidies.