The FIERCE project, funded under the Horizon Europe Cluster 4 Industry call HORIZON-CL4-2024-RESILIENCE-01-41 - 'Innovate to transform' support for SME's sustainability transition (CSA), has launched the Second Open Call for its Financial Support Programme to support SMEs in developing innovative solutions for the green and digital transition using satellite data and space-based services. Running from 1 November 2024 to 31 October 2027, FIERCE has a total budget of approximately 5 million EUR, of which 2.5 million EUR will be used to support SMEs through the cascade funding mechanism.
FIERCE is a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) dedicated to accelerating the adoption of downstream space data and services (satellite observation data, geospatial services, etc.) by SMEs to drive innovation for Europe’s green and digital transition, and to strengthening the sustainability, digitalisation and competitiveness of SMEs.
🔹 FIERCE 2nd Open Call – Financial Support Programme
Through this call, SMEs will receive direct financial support to implement their innovative space-data-based projects. The call targets applicants who are interested in using downstream space data to create solutions that have a positive environmental impact, either for the company itself (by improving its current processes) or for its users (by creating new or improving existing products and services).
The Financial Support Programme supports the contracting of External Service Providers (ESP) to help beneficiaries design, upscale or commercialise space-enabled green solutions, or even adopt commercially available ones.
Applicants should demonstrate their potential to leverage downstream space data, such as Earth Observation (EO), remote sensing, satellite navigation, etc.
The programme places a particular focus on supporting solutions in areas such as:
Improvement of circularity in terms of improved use of resources and waste management
Safe, resource-efficient, and environmentally friendly management of primary, secondary, and critical raw materials
Improved environmental monitoring
Each application is treated as a “project”, and selected SMEs can receive support under the following types of projects:
Ideation projects: up to 25,000 EUR
Scale-Up projects: up to 50,000 EUR
Commercialisation projects: up to 25,000 EUR
The total overall funding limit is 50,000 EUR per beneficiary. The total budget available for this Open Call is 694,520 EUR, and approximately 22 projects are expected to be supported. The grant will be paid in a lump sum. Beneficiaries supported under the First Financial Support Programme can also apply to this call, as long as they do not exceed the maximum financial support available per beneficiary.
Application Process
Applications must be submitted online and must be in English. The key dates for the call are as follows:
Call opening date: 8 September 2026
Call deadline: 9 November 2026, 17:00 (Brussels time)
Only single SMEs legally registered in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country, including Türkiye, can apply (no consortium is required).
All proposals will be checked against the eligibility conditions, based on the declarations made in each proposal. Applications that do not comply with these requirements will be rejected. Applicants are therefore advised to read the Guide for Applicants carefully and to prepare their applications in line with the criteria set out in it. More information about the project and the call can be found on the FIERCE project website.
More information on the Open Call: https://2nd-financing.project-fierce.eu/
Guide for Applicants: https://2nd-financing.project-fierce.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Guide-for-Applicants.docx.pdf
Online application form: https://opportunities.getonepass.eu/opportunities/financial-support-program/2nd-open-call