Market Impact through Disruptive Innovation in Clean Energy Technologies

Project Information

MI_DICE

Grant agreement ID: 834506

DOI

10.3030/834506

Project closed

EC signature date 31 January 2019

Start date 1 February 2019

End date 31 August 2022

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Secure, clean and efficient energy

Total cost

€ 990 315,50

EU contribution

€ 990 315,50

Coordinated by

KIC INNOENERGY SE
Netherlands

Periodic Reporting for period 3 - MI_DICE (Market Impact through Disruptive Innovation in Clean Energy Technologies)

Reporting period: 2022-02-01 to 2022-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

WHAT WAS THE MAIN PROBLEM ADDRESSED?
Many energy technologies with initially promising break-through potential face difficulties with respect to actual market uptake, i.e. turning a technology into a product or service and bringing it from the lab to the market.
WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT FOR SOCIETY?
Research and Innovation (R&I) are critical for the EU’s pathway to achieving climate neutrality and digital transformation. At the same time, Europe exhibits a gap between investments in research and commercialization of the results thereof.
The results of MI_DICE could concretely improve the likelihood of market uptake of the technologies under development in the supported H2020 projects, ideally deployed at scale and hence to the benefit of society at large.
At a more strategic level, the results of MI_DICE should inform the European Commission’s/DG RTD’s future approach to supporting research and innovation, which could contribute to the EU’s objectives of the energy transition/carbon-neutrality, competitiveness, economic growth and jobs.

WHAT WERE THE OVERALL OBJECTIVES?
MI_DICE’s overall objective for EIT InnoEnergy was to support selected Projects under the Pilot Action “Disruptive innovation in clean energy technologies”, during their lifetime, with continuous innovation and business development.
As MI_DICE was a pilot, it also had the objective to support the European Commission/DG RTD with respect to the design of EU instruments and initiatives to support Market Uptake of disruptive energy technologies, in particular through the Horizon Europe programme (2021-2027). For this purpose, EIT InnoEnergy continuously assessed and regularly transmitted “lessons learnt” to the European Commission/DG RTD.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN CONCLUSIONS FROM MI_DICE?
For early-stage break-through energy technologies,
1. Market uptake support is beneficial, in light of lab-to-market and EU ambitions to capitalize on its investments in research.
2. Effort on supported projects should be balanced. Actions on market uptake support should gradually intensify, in line with technology developments of the supported projects (which are the basis upon which to deploy support actions)
3. Pedagogy is key. The teams of the supported projects supported and evolution of their mindset (with respect to market uptake) are at the core in supporting early-stage projects.
4. Feasibility Study and Tech2Market Plans used as tools in MI_DICE are useful, their potential increasing over project lifetime.

For future initiatives on market uptake support, recommendations for improvement are around:
1. Selection process of the supported breakthrough technologies (consortium, team, topical alignment)
2. During implementation of the support actions (consortium/project dynamics, tools, priority on market feedback)
3. Clear and constant communication (that this is not pure R&D)
4. Revisiting EU boundary conditions (to adapt to applications in different markets)

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

In reporting period 1, we supported the 3 H2020 projects in understanding the methodology and the potential value of market uptake services. We supported the use of the tools and methods, informing the first stage-gate review and decision.

Main results achieved were the following:
• 3 Feasibility Studies supported, including the development of suitable templates
• Support services provided to all 3 H2020 projects
• Lessons learnt report provided to DG RTD

Qualitatively, the main result is a mindset evolution within the H2020 projects, from technology-orientation to a more commercial one.

Reporting period 2 was about project support after the first gate review, mostly in Covid pandemic situation. We supported projects with targeted interventions, including
• Market prospecting
• IP
• Policy/regulation
• Public finance

Main results achieved were the following:
• 3 projects supported with targeted market uptake services
• Lessons learnt report provided to DG RTD/CINEA

Reporting period 3 was about project support in post-Covid pandemic situation. We supported projects with targeted interventions, including
• Market prospecting
• IP
• Policy/regulation
• Public finance
Main results achieved were the following:
• 3 projects supported with targeted market uptake services
• Lessons learnt report provided to DG RTD/CINEA
This final report on lessons learnt is the major result of the work. It is the executive summary of MI_DICE as regards the subject of market uptake support at early technology maturity. It is intended to be the reference document (from MI_DICE) for CINEA/DG RTD on this matter in the future to come. As such, it was shared with representatives from both organizations for explanation and deliberation.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

State of the art
As far as MI_DICE is concerned, the specific characteristics that could be taken into account for a comparison to state-of-the-art could be the following:
• The investor, which is public and European
• The type of funding, which is grants
• The maturity stage, which is low-TRL
• The approach to market uptake, which is systemic
• The objective, which is market uptake (and not only technology development)
In that respect, the state of the art would be set notably by:
• The Horizon 2020 program and, in the future, the Horizon Europe Program (incl. the EIC Pathfinder).
• The Innovation Fund
We consider that MI_DICE is beyond state-of-the-art in the combination of maturity stage and objective as well as maturity stage and approach to market uptake, together with the specific technologz focus. We acknowledge the EIC Pathfinder as being state of the art as well.

Results by end of the project
1) At the level of the H2020 projects: An appropriation of commercial considerations already in stage of technology development, possibly with an adoption of selected tools. Ideally, an increased likelihood for market uptake at the end of the H2020 project (proxied by further investment into technology/product development).
2) At the level of market uptake support: Clear recommendations to DG RTD on what works and what not and why with respect to supporting market uptake of early-stage break-through energy technologies. Continued incorporation in the considerations of evolution of Horizon Europe, EIC Pathfinder, etc

Impact
We see potential impact on the logic of conditional investments, taking into account the specificities of public investments at early maturity stage.
We also see the potential impact of systemic approach to de-risking public investments, as evidenced also in the EIC Pathfinder requesting a mandatory work package “Innovation Management” in application. We experienced technology developments as the backbone at early maturity stage. Hence, while comprehensive de-risking services are suitable for later maturity stages, they can possibly be less extensive/elaborate early-stage.

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