The Marine Energy Alliance (MEA) is a 4 year European Territorial Cooperation project running from May 2018 to May 2022. The project has a total budget of €6 million and is financially supported by Interreg North West Europe, who provides €3.6 million of ERDF funding.

The aim of MEA is to progress the technical and commercial maturity level of early-stage (TRL 3 – 4) marine energy technology companies with the overall goal of reducing the risk of device failure in subsequent demonstration phases.

Via MEA, selected marine energy technology companies are able to receive a suite of tailored expert services that will enable them to realise their ambitions and, more broadly, contribute to the coherent growth of the marine energy industry in general.

Through participation in MEA, companies will gain access to the project partners’ world-leading expertise in marine energy development. Awarded companies will have the chance to work closely together with a transnational team of marine energy experts on both the technical advancement of their technology, as well as the development of their commercial strategy and business plans. Each service offer is intended to put the company’s technology and business firmly on the road towards successful commercialisation.

 

2-Stage application process

Access to the MEA Service Offer is awarded to companies via a two-Stage application process. The first Stage of the application process requests the applicant to submit an online Expression of Interest. The online Expression of Interest should be completed and submitted via the MEA project website. Successful applicants passing the first Stage are invited to take part in the second Stage of the application process. This Stage involves a 30-minute remote (online) interaction involving a brief pitch (5 – 10 minutes) followed by a Q&A session conducted by representatives of the MEA partnership.

Applications are evaluated using eligibility criteria and qualitative criteria. Applicants should ensure to familiarise themselves with the information in the Guidance Document before submitting their Expression of Interest.

 

Timeline for the first Call for Applications

The first Call for Applications is open until Friday 15 February 2019 at 17:00 (CET). Any applications received after that exact date and time will not be considered eligible. Successful applicants passing Stage 1 are informed on the 1st of March 2019 and will be instructed to prepare for their pitch and Q&A in Stage 2. An indication of the timelines is given below:

 

Questions

Remaining questions not answered in the FAQ and Guidance Document can be directed to MEA@dutchmarineenergy.com.

A webinar will be organised mid-January 2019 to introduce the project and the first Call for Applications. The exact date and time will be published on this website and our social media pages early January 2019.

 

About

Project MEA is part of one of 14 European transnational cooperation programs developed with the goal of making northwestern Europe a key economic player with high level of innovation, sustainability and cohesion.

The project partners include Dutch Marine Energy Center (DMEC), European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), Centre for Marine and Renewable Energy (MaREI), Ecole Centrale de Nantes, Exceedence, INNOSEA, Maritime Research Institute Netherlands, the University of Edinburgh, and communications partner Navingo.

They will work jointly to deliver integrated technical and commercial services, tailored to the needs of 40 companies yet to receive the support, in order to reduce the risk in the subsequent demonstration phases for their technologies.