The European Commission has selected 17 small-scale innovative clean tech projects to receive over 65 million euros in project support under the EU Innovation Fund. The projects have all the same aim: develop breakthrough technologies in energy-intensive industries, renewable energy, and energy storage. The selected projects cover a wide range of sectors and, together, are expected to avoid over 1.8 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions within the first ten years of their operations, contributing to Europe's decarbonisation.

Among the chosen projects, 8 are related to energy-intensive industries and will receive 32,6 million euros in funding. Other 2 projects will develop innovations in energy storage and will receive 8,4 million euros, the last 7 projects will focus on renewable energy and will receive funds for 24,4 million euros. Each of the 17 projects will get grants ranging from 1,6 to 4,5 million euros. One third of the beneficiaries are small and medium-sized companies.

Italian companies are well represented in this clean tech initiative, with 5 projects financed in the energy-intensive industries section.

Bormioli SpA will lead two projects. AETERNUS (Advanced ElecTrification and hEat Recovery for iNnovative prodUction of Sustainable glass) will work on the electrification of the currently gas-fired furnace, heat-to-power recovery through an Organic Rankine Cycle and digitalisation solutions in production of container glass. The realisation of the project will also demonstrate the viability on a commercial scale of a first-of-a-kind solution never applied for container glass production in Italy.

Bormioli's other project - MAGNUS (Manufacturing of Glass through iNnovative hybridisation Up-Scaling) - will work on hybridisation of the melting furnace in container glass production, digitalisation and automation in different sections of production line, and integration of renewable energy in the glass industry. The realisation of the project will also demonstrate the viability on a commercial scale of an up-scaling solution that has never been applied for high quality glass production in Italy and in Europe.

Saint-Gobain's project HITeUP (Heat up Isover Transition to Electric Under Production) will be the demonstration of a first-of-a-kind curing oven in the glass wool production process at Saint-Gobain site which maximises its electrification, reducing natural gas consumption.

MyRemono will coordinate the BOOST (Back-to-MonOmer recycling of polymeric materialS using molten meTals) project. Its goal is producing recycled high quality MethylMethacrylate (r-MMA) from secondary raw material sourced from polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) scraps and extending the technology application towards other plastics matrices. The innovative technology enables the plastics depolymerisation using a molten metal chemical recycling method. The Project aims at both increasing the current low rate of PMMA scraps recycling within the EU and reducing the reliance on fossil raw materials for MMA production.

Acciaierie Bertoli Safau is the coordinator in the CUSTARD project. As its acronym (carbon Capture and Use at a STeel plant with an Advanced solution to Reach Decarbonisation) explains, this project aims to develop CCU technology to decarbonise the flue gases of a steel plant. An integrated system that comprises a flue gas conditioning step followed by a reactor unit will be able to capture up to 50% of CO2 from the flue gas of a reheating furnace fed by natural gas to be used with caustic soda for sodium bicarbonate production.