Australia signs up to EU’s Horizon Europe research program

BRUSSELS — Australia’s Industry Minister Tim Ayres formally signed the country up to Horizon Europe on Thursday, giving the country's researchers access to the EU’s €95 billion research and innovation program.

Australia will join Pillar II of the program, which funds research into areas including advanced computing tech, critical minerals, health, climate and clean energy. From January, Australian organizations will be eligible for funding on the same terms as EU countries and will be able to lead project consortia.

The move will be a “boon for Australian science, research and innovation,” Ayres said in a statement, adding that “the big challenges facing Australia and the world cannot be solved by any one country working alone.”

The signing formalizes negotiations concluded in June. Australian organizations have already taken part in 239 Horizon Europe projects, with nearly one in four applications selected, according to the European Commission.