CDTI INNOVACIÓN’S 2026 MISIONES PROGRAMME APPROVED
Cooperative Business R&D Projects led by companies will be funded
The 2026 call for CDTI Innovación’s MISIONES Programme (Centre for the Development of Technology and Innovation) has just been approved, with the aim of boosting knowledge transfer and fostering collaboration among institutions and stakeholders in the Spanish System of Science, Technology and Innovation (SECTI), with special attention to public-private collaboration.
Cooperative Business R Projects led by companies will be funded, so that the objectives set out in these proposals help address the socioeconomic challenges referred to by the missions.
Below, we summarize the main characteristics of these grants:
BENEFICIARIES
Business consortia made up of a minimum of 3 companies and up to 6, where, at least, two of them are independent of each other, and at least one is an SME.
PROJECT TYPES
Cooperative Business RD Projects led by companies, so that the objectives set out in these proposals help address the socioeconomic challenges referred to by the missions.
The missions of the 2026 call will be:
- Development of a stable, flexible and resilient energy system with strong and reliable grids.
- Towards a more efficient, sustainable and resilient aeronautics sector.
- New scientific capabilities against multidrug-resistant microorganisms and other future challenges.
- New capabilities to advance strategic autonomy in security and defence.
- Women’s health within the framework of pathology-oriented biomedical research.
- Food sovereignty in Spain: a sector focused on efficiency, quality, sustainability and food safety.
- Affordable, sustainable and rapidly deliverable housing through industrialised and digitalised construction.
The technologies and areas of action are:
| 7 Missions (technologies) | Areas of action |
| Development of a stable, flexible and resilient energy system with strong and reliable grids. | · Development of systems aimed at facilitating the integration of renewable energy.
· Decentralised, robust, flexible, secure and efficient energy systems. · Flexibility of the electricity system. · Smart grid systems: monitoring, control and operation of elements of the electricity grid. · Efficiency, security and maintenance of energy generation, distribution and supply infrastructure and systems. · Development of large-scale energy storage systems. |
| Towards a more efficient, sustainable and resilient aeronautics sector. | · Materials, designs and/or processes aimed at weight reduction, aerodynamic efficiency, and a high production rate.
· Ultra-Efficient Propulsion and SAF: aircraft engines for more efficient commercial aircraft compatible with 100% SAF. · Systems for the More Electric Aircraft (MEA): electrification/hybridisation with batteries or fuel cells, improved actuation systems. |
| New scientific capabilities against multidrug-resistant microorganisms and other future challenges. | · New antimicrobials.
· Rapid diagnosis of infections. · Surveillance and epidemiology of resistance. · Vaccine development. |
| New capabilities to advance strategic autonomy in security and defence. | · Medical countermeasures for CBRN crises.
· Advanced technologies to improve flight behaviour and performance of subsonic self-propelled systems. · Architectures and enabling technologies for a tactical combat cloud in defence. · Robust PNT and communications solutions for contested environments and restrictive conditions. · Innovative applications of laser technologies in defence. · High energy-density, low-observability propulsion systems for long-endurance UAs. |
| Women’s health within the framework of pathology-oriented biomedical research. | · Prevention and/or predictive systems.
· Diagnostic tools. · Treatment. · Monitoring. |
| Food sovereignty in Spain: a sector focused on efficiency, quality, sustainability and food safety. | · Boosting efficiency in the agri-food sector.
· Smart management of information and available resources. · Boosting biotechnology. · Boosting sustainability. · Boosting agri-food chain security. · Implementation of technology platforms. |
| Affordable, sustainable and rapidly deliverable housing through industrialised and digitalised construction. | · Industrial processes and manufacturing plants.
· Robotics, automation and on-site assistance. · Materials and circular economy. · Resilience of homes, structures and cities to natural disasters and climate change. |
PROJECT REQUIREMENTS
- Duration:
- Start on 01/01/2027 and a duration of 3 or 4 years.
- Budget:
- Between 3.5 and 10 million.
- Subcontracting to Public Research Organisations (PROs) > 15%.
- Subcontracting per beneficiary < 50% of its eligible budget.
- Minimum budget per company: €175,000.
- No participant may be responsible for more than 70% of the project’s eligible budget.
- Balanced budget distribution over the project duration and among companies.
- Minimum 40% industrial research activities.
- Incentive effect. The project start date may never be earlier than the date of grant application (prior feasibility studies are excluded).
- Incompatible with other grants.
ELIGIBLE COSTS
- Staff costs, for both employees under an employment contract and self-employed staff who are partners of the company.
- Equipment and durable materials costs. If they are not used for the project throughout their entire useful life, only the depreciation costs corresponding to the project duration will be considered eligible.
- Contract research, technical knowledge and patent costs purchased or obtained under licence from external sources under full competition conditions (excluding those associated with processing and managing the project).
- Materials costs and other additional operating expenses (materials, supplies and other similar products).
- Consultancy activities to support the consortium representative’s coordination tasks (maximum: 15,000 per year).
- Travel costs linked to coordination meetings between consortium members, and only for workers who charge hours to the project (maximum €5,000/beneficiary).
- Indirect costs, calculated as 20% of direct costs (all eligible costs except audit and travel).
- Audit report costs. Maximum €1,500 per beneficiary per year.
ELIGIBLE COSTS
The aid will be granted in the form of a grant and will have a maximum aid intensity between 40% and 80%, depending on the type of project and company size:
| Project type | Maximum aid intensity | ||
| Small Company | Medium Company | Large Company | |
| Industrial Research | |||
| Effective collaboration between companies, at least one of which is an SME, provided that no single company bears more than 70% of the eligible costs | 80% | 75% | 65% |
| Experimental development | |||
| Effective collaboration between companies, at least one of which is an SME, provided that no single company bears more than 70% of the eligible costs | 60% | 50% | 40% |
The aid intensity limit for each project and beneficiary will be a weighted average based on the budget distribution between each type of activity (industrial research or experimental development) and the maximum intensity of aid corresponding to the beneficiary and the activity.
GUARANTEES
Not applicable.
OPENING DATE
From 12/05 to 12/06 at 12:00 (mainland Spain time).
BUDGET ALLOCATION
60 million, expandable by an additional 90 million. At least 20 million for the aeronautics mission and at least 5 million for the women’s health mission.
07/05/2026
