Research wasted as ‘demo projects’ face funding drought

The fruits of EU research are not being converted into marketable products due to difficulties in funding expensive "demonstration" projects, according to Bernhard Schleich of SusChem, a European technology platform for sustainable chemistry.

Schleich says Europe's research funds are geared towards pre-competitive research but stops short of backing new technology when it approaches the demonstration phrase.

He said most funding opportunities in Europe are still "research-oriented".

But it is a big step from a research result to a final, marketable product. Here, companies are often left alone because this phase is no longer considered pre-competitive – which is not always the case. Often excellent research will not be developed further because no 'risk funding' is available, Schleich said in an interview with EURACTIV.

Projects with long timelines and those requiring heavy investments which cannot be funded by companies on their own are most likely to fall by the wayside. This can include biorefineries and other green technologies, according to Schleich.

Similarly, technology developed by SMEs can struggle to reach the market due to limited access to finance.

"The result of not supporting demonstration projects would be a decline in Europe’s industrial performance and competitiveness. Pilot and industrial demonstration projects are the decisive steps to transform results from our R&D into 'best available technology'," said Schleich, who is also a member of chemicals industry group Cefic.

He wants the EU's multi-billion euro science funds, such as FP7, to focus more on demonstration projects and coordinate better with the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP), which is run by the European Commission's industry wing.

"Demonstration projects are also needed to convince people to invest in energy-saving technologies, such as insulation for buildings constructed in the last century. Otherwise, Europe will not meet its climate goals," Schleich warned.

He added that he hopes to see some effort made to tackle the issue in the Commission's forthcoming innovation action plan, due to be published this summer.

To read the interview in full, please click here.

Read more with Euractiv

EU weighs proposals to break GMO deadlock

Plans to let national governments decide whether to allow genetically modified (GM) crop cultivation on their land could unblock a paralysis in EU GMO approvals, but risk igniting internal market disputes.