Pre-announcement: 1st edition of the Franco-Czech bilateral call for nuclear projects - ANR TACR

As partners in the field of nuclear energy, France and the Czech Republic have played a leading role within the European Nuclear Alliance in the successful reform of the electricity market. The French and Czech governments are keen to strengthen these ties, particularly through cooperation in the field of research.

On 9 January 2024 in Prague, the French National Research Agency (ANR) and the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic (TA CR) signed a framework agreement to fund bilateral nuclear research and innovation projects.

On the French side, the budget to support the French partners in these projects has been allocated by the Directorate-General for Energy and Climate (DGEC).

Objectives

Funding will be awarded to collaborative research projects between French and Czech partners, conducting application-oriented research. The presence of a Czech industrial partner in the consortium is therefore mandatory. On the French side, the participation of companies, although not compulsory, is encouraged and will be appreciated.

The evaluation will be carried out by TA CR and the ANR, and projects may have a maximum duration of 36 months.

Topics of the call

1. Safety and reliability of present nuclear power plants (nuclear reactors)
2. Research on materials and fuel cycle to support research reactors
3. Research in the field of the Generation IV reactors (GFRs and MSRs)
4. Support for the development of Small modular reactors (SMRs)

Key dates

Proposal submissions: May 16 - July 17, 2024
Announcement of Call results: by November 30, 2024

The partners must be careful to submit their complete applications on the ANR submission site and on the Czech TA CR agency submission site before the deadline.

Project consortium

• Czech side: An enterprise, regardless the size, must be the main applicant on the Czech side.
• French side: partners eligible for ANR funding, the presence of a private organisation in the consortium is encouraged. ANR funding regulation will apply.