Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP)

Enriched EU · Found: 2026-03-10 13:41

European Partnership co-funded by the EU and national funding agencies. Supports research and innovation for a sustainable blue economy across European seas including North Sea and Baltic Sea. Joint transnational calls for marine and maritime R&I projects covering biodiversity, climate, sustainable fisheries, and coastal resilience.

Source: https://bluepartnership.eu/

Funding Details

Funder

Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP) — Horizon Europe co-funded partnership coordinated by Italy (Ministry of Universities and Research) with Norway as co-coordinator

Funding Goal

Transnational research and innovation (R&I) projects for a sustainable blue economy across European sea basins (Mediterranean, Black Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea) and Atlantic Ocean. Covers biodiversity, climate-ocean interactions, sustainable fisheries, marine spatial planning, coastal resilience, marine pollution, ocean observation, and sustainable blue growth. Six co-funded joint transnational calls planned over seven years; third call currently open with €43.5 million funding.

Funding Amount

Third call: €43.5 million total. €450 million total planned investments over 7 years across all six calls. (up to 43.500.000 €)

Deadline

2026-06-17 (Fixed)

How to Apply

Two-stage process: pre-proposals deadline was 17 November 2025; full proposals deadline is 17 June 2026. Apply through national funding agencies in participating countries. Call secretariat: sbep.call-secretariat@uefiscdi.ro. Full call documentation via bluepartnership.eu.

Target Region

European seas and Atlantic Ocean: Mediterranean, Black Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea. Pan-European with 32 participating countries.

Contact

Call secretariat: sbep.call-secretariat@uefiscdi.ro. Coordinator: Ministry of Universities and Research (Italy) - sbep@mur.gov.it. National contact: Innovation Fund Denmark (IFD) for Danish applicants.

Last Checked

2026-03-15 14:27

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Transnational research consortium required — partners from multiple participating countries
• Applications submitted through national funding agencies (e.g. Innovation Fund Denmark for DK; Research Council of Norway for NO)
• Eligible organisations vary by national rules — research institutions, universities, companies; NGOs may be eligible in some countries

Project Scope

• Project scope must align with the SBEP Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda thematic areas
• Project activities must have clear relevance to at least one European sea basin (North Sea, Baltic, Mediterranean, Black Sea, Atlantic)

Required Documents

• Pre-proposal and full proposal forms required, submitted through national agency portals

Constraints

• Two-stage application: pre-proposals (deadline November 2025, now closed); full proposals deadline 17 June 2026
• Full proposal required by 17 June 2026 — pre-proposal stage has already passed
• Co-funding requirements apply — national agencies determine matching fund rules

Summary

The Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP) is a Horizon Europe co-funded partnership representing an unprecedented collaboration of 74 partner institutions from 32 countries and the European Commission. It pools research and innovation investments at pan-European scale to support sustainable blue economy development across the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea, and Atlantic Ocean. The partnership's strategy is anchored in its Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) 2024-2026, which covers: marine biodiversity and ecosystem health, climate-ocean interactions and coastal resilience, sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, marine spatial planning, ocean observation and digital twins, blue biotechnology, and sustainable maritime industries. Six joint transnational calls for R&I proposals are planned over a seven-year timeframe. The third call (currently open for full proposals until 17 June 2026) has total funding of €43.5 million. Applicants must apply through their national funding agency — Denmark is a participating country through Innovation Fund Denmark (IFD), and Norway participates through the Research Council of Norway. The total planned investment across all calls is €450 million. Eligible activities include applied research, innovation projects, demonstrator projects, and capacity-building in the blue economy sector. Projects require transnational consortia. Eligible applicants and co-funding rates vary by national agency rules. In addition to project calls, the partnership runs Transnational Access Calls to Research Infrastructures. The programme explicitly covers the North Sea and Baltic Sea as target sea basins, making it relevant to organisations with research and innovation activities in these regions. The partnership has hosted dedicated workshops for North Sea stakeholders (Amsterdam, November 2024) and Baltic Sea stakeholders.

Historical Context

Horizon Europe co-funded partnership launched as part of the European Commission's R&I framework. Strategy anchored in a Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) 2024-2026. First and second transnational calls have been completed. The 2nd Symposium was held February 2026 in Bucharest. Total planned investment of €450M over 7 years.

Why it was added

EU co-funded partnership with joint transnational calls specifically for marine/coastal R&I in North Sea and Baltic Sea

Sources

• https://bluepartnership.eu/
• https://bluepartnership.eu/funding-opportunities
• https://bluepartnership.eu/funding-opportunity/sustainable-blue-economy-partnerships-third-joint-transnational-call

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