Innovation Agenda Conclusions

The Innovation Agenda contributes to future development by mapping the following pieces

Four priority areas:

• A comprehensive and common understanding of Innovation
• Partners’ individual and joint capacities towards a START based ecosystem
• Short and longer-term innovations
• Communication, dissemination, exploitation and coordination

Six Innovation Pillars:

• Value Chain and Process Optimization
• New Product Development and Application-Driven Innovation
• Sustainable Materials and Circular Innovation
• Digitalisation and Data-Driven Innovation
• Business Models, Market Uptake, and Commercial Sustainability
• Collaboration, Knowledge Sharing, and Capacity Building

TRL progression:

• Short term (TRL 4–6): Material optimization, standardized characterization and LCA/LCC model consolidation
• Medium term (TRL 6–7): Prototype validation in operational environments and Pilot manufacturing and system integration
• Long term (TRL 8–9): Demonstration plants, market-ready products and Commercial deployment in niche applications

Enabling Instruments and Funding Strategy:

• European funding (Horizon Europe IA/RIA)
• National funding for targeted value chain components
• Private sector engagement and co-financing
• Blended finance instruments combining public and private capital
• Strategic partnerships with sector leaders and industrial end-users.

Policy alignment and strategic positioning:

• EU Green Deal and Climate Targets
• Energy Efficiency Directive and REPower
• EUCircular Economy Action Plan
• EU strategies on critical raw materials and supply chain resilience