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European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA)
Interregional Innovation Investments Instrument

Provides advisory and financial support to innovation projects in joint smart specialisation areas on the road towards commercialisation and scale-up

Interregional Innovation Investments (I3) Instrument

The Interregional innovation investments instrument as part of the European Regional and Development Fund (ERDF) aims at supporting interregional innovation projects in their commercialisation and scale-up phases giving them the tools to overcome regulatory and other barriers and bring their project to investment level.

The agency will implement two call strands:

  • Financial and advisory support for investments in interregional innovation projects;
  • Financial and advisory support to the development of value chains in less developed regions.

What we do and what are we looking for 

General publications23 March 2023
I3 Instrument factsheet

Learn more about the three dimensions of the Interregional Innovation InvestmentsInstrument:  what we are looking for & what is is is there for you. 

I3 Instrument
English
(834.52 KB - PDF)
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Funding opportunities

The I3 Instrument work programme aims at promoting innovation through Smart Specialisation and interregional collaboration. The I3 Instrument supports stronger interregional cooperation in investments and makes sustainable connections by linking regional ecosystems in shared smart specialisation areas vital to accelerate market uptake of research results and stimulate innovation. Therefore its focus is on:

Strand 1 - Financial and advisory support for investments in interregional innovation projects

Strand 1 targets mature partnerships to help them accelerate market uptake and scale-up of innovative solutions in shared smart specialisation priority areas, as well as to develop a portfolio of investment projects.

Strand 2a - Financial and advisory support to the development of value chains in less developed regions

Strand 2a focuses on increasing the capacity of regional innovation ecosystems in less developed regions to participate in global value chains, as well as the capacity to participate in partnerships with other regions.

Budget (both strands)

  • 2021: EUR 75 800 571
  • 2022: EUR 77  316 583
  • 2023: EUR 78 862 915
  • 2024: EUR 80 440 173.

Calls

Regional Innovation Valleys calls for proposal

In the context of the New European Innovation Agenda, the Regional Innovation Valleys (RIVs) aim to create connected regional innovation valleys across the European Union (EU), involving regions with lower innovation performances, by building on strategic areas of regional strength and specialisation (defined in their smart specialisation strategies), in support of key EU priorities.  

The European Commission dedicated EUR 122 million under Horizon Europe (European Innovation Ecosystems) and under the European Regional Development Fund (Interregional Innovation Investments (I3) Instrument).

You can submit your proposal until 17 October 2023, 17:00 CET.

For further information, you can consult the documents below:

Apply for Interregional Innovation Investments Strand 1

Apply for Interregional Innovation Investments Strand 2a

For further information about the European Innovation Ecosystems call, please visit this webpage and for further information on the similarities and differences between the EIE and I3 calls, please consult this guideline.

Guidelines for applicants

General FAQ 

Consult the FAQ of the Funding &  tender opportunites portal 

 

Regional Innovation Valleys - Call for proposals Informative Session - 25 May 2023

On 25 May 2023 the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA)  organised an informative webinar to learn more about the Regional Innovation Valleys (RIVs) calls for proposals.

The Power Point Presentation of the event is available below along with the recording.

25 MAY 2023
Power Point Presentation: Regional Innovation Valleys - Call for Proposals Info Session - 25 May 2023
English
(4.89 MB - PDF)
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Information day - 23 June 2022

On 23 June 2022, a second Info Day  about the funding opportunities under the  Interregional Innovation Investment (I3) Instrument call (deadline 18 October 2022) was held. Did you miss it?  No problem - the recording and the presentation are available now.

 

 For beneficiaries

Communication toolkit

Promote your actions and results effectively. Be strategic, plan ahead, target your information, choose the right audience. Learn what are your obligations.

 

Funded projects

11 projects were selected under the first I3 Instrument cut-off.  They will receive about EUR 70.5 million of EU funding coming from the European Regional Development Fund, and at least 70% of the funding will be directly invested into companies.

The average funding for a project is EUR 6.4 million and will be shared among 255 beneficiaries from 22 EU Member States. The successful projects where selected from 28 applications.

See the list of funded projects

I3 under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

The Interregional Innovation Investment Instrument (I3) financed from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF represents an opportunity to support interregional portfolios of companies’ investments bringing innovation to the market at high technology readiness levels (TRL 6-9) and reshaping EU interregional value chains.

It funds interregional innovation investments projects under shared smart specialisation priorities (S3) in the following thematic areas: green transition, digital transition and smart manufacturing which take place in the S3 participating regions. It aims to use the untapped potential of investments in innovation where the public and private sectors, as well as research and business from different countries and regions, can work together.

Policy background documents

20 APRIL 2023
I3 Instrument Work Programme 2023 - 2024
English
(100.4 KB - HTML)
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6 JANUARY 2023
Commission decision on  the financing of Interregional Innovation Investments instrument to be supported by the European Regional Development Fund and the adoption of the work programme for 2021-2022
English
(141.61 KB - PDF)
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6 JANUARY 2023
Annex - Multiannual work programme for 2021 - 2022 for the Interregional Innovation Investments instrument
English
(306.73 KB - PDF)
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6 JANUARY 2023
COMMISSION DECISION of 10.2.2022 amending Commission Decision C(2021) 6152 on the financing of Interregional Innovation Investments instrument to be supported by the European Regional Development Fund and the adoption of the work programme for 2021-2022
English
(135.05 KB - PDF)
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6 JANUARY 2023
Annex The Annex to Commission Decision C(2021) 6152
English
(115.69 KB - PDF)
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