[APR 2024] Frequently asked questions

[APR 2024] Consult the frequently asked questions

Questions on funding rules
Questions about partnerships
Questions about international partnerships
Questions about eligible themes
Questions about the financial appendix
Details of CESAB projects

Questions on funding rules

The funding rules in appendix 3 apply to each of the partners and not just to the project as a whole. The excel file that will be sent to you to fill in your budget information includes this condition.

What is the maximum amount that can be requested for funding under the ITTECOP programme in the "research project" category?

This amount varies according to the projects, their nature and their ambition - the analysis that will be carried out will evaluate the adequacy between these elements and the budget requested. We have indicated the total amount of the call and the number of target projects, which may give an idea of the average. But this is only an average, as some projects require more, others less, depending on their ambitions.

Is it possible to carry out a research project between public/private establishments and public/private contracting authorities without necessarily including a university partner?

Yes

What are the financial rules for EPICs? What are the eligible costs for EPICS, an intermediary structure between private and public bodies? Are the costs of permanent staff eligible?

This call for proposals is open to all French research teams, regardless of the institution to which they belong or their status (public or private).

For the sake of simplicity, we have chosen not to distinguish between EPICs and other public institutions. The rules that apply are therefore those set out in appendix 3 for public institutions. In particular, permanent staff costs are not eligible for EPICs.

What are the eligibility conditions for companies?

See appendix 3. The rate of subsidy depends on having an economic activity within the scope of the project (regardless of public or private status: 80%, minimum rule, etc). For eligible expenditure: ≠ between pbc and private status: eligible staff costs only for private.

Funding rates and rules apply partner by partner (and not to the project as a whole).

Are grants subject to the de minimis rule?

If the aid is state aid (i.e. the company carries out an economic activity within the scope of the project), there are several aid schemes that are compatible with the European internal market. The de minimis regulation is one of them, but there are others. Please consult the details in appendix 3 of the text of the call for research projects.

Does the project leader have to be a university lab?

No, research skills are required, but the project can be led by a variety of organisations.

Cerema support

If Cerema is part of a project, the staff time involved will be managed specifically by MTECT.

Can the research project be used to fund a thesis which will be part of another research project already funded?

A research project can include a thesis or a post-doctorate, but it cannot consist solely of a thesis (or a post-doctorate). De facto, the thesis must be integrated into a self-supporting project, possibly linked to another project funded elsewhere. This has already happened with the EFACILT project.

Is there a minimum funding rule per consortium member?

The administrative "cost/benefit" ratio of the micro-partners is not favourable below 10% of the subsidised budget, as indicated in appendix 2 of the call for proposals. Below this amount, the budget must be borne by one of the partners, who will then reallocate the sum.

Questions about partnerships

Project management

It is preferable to have a single project leader. The lead partner must be authorised by the other partners to act on their behalf. The project leader is not obliged to countersign the letters of commitment from the other partners. The signature of the partners is sufficient.

In this type of arrangement with a single promoter, all payments are made to the promoter, who is responsible for paying them to the partners.

Is it possible to have partners who are not beneficiaries?

Yes

For the sake of simplicity, it is preferable not to list partners who are not applying for funding but are using their own resources. Indicating them will not change the amounts allocated, as compliance with the rules must be checked for each partner and not just for the project as a whole.

Is it permitted not to have private partners when responding to this call for proposals?

There is no obligation to have a private partner.

Are associations eligible?

Yes

Questions about international partnerships

There must be a French team involved in the project (pilot or partner - see point 1.2 and appendix 2). To be a partner, the team must represent at least 10% of the total budget.

Incubator and exploratory projects are not open to non-French teams because the funding is too low. These projects must necessarily involve a single project leader with no co-beneficiary partners.

In the case of an international project involving foreign research labs, does the minimum French team required have to come from a research lab or can it be attached to a private company?

The French partner does not have to be a research laboratory. A private company is eligible.

In the case of an international team, can the leader be foreign? / Is it possible to apply as an African research organisation? / It can be a research centre outside France to apply for these projects or need a consortium with a French institution?

YES - see page 7 of the call and appendix 2

Extract from article 1.2 :

This call for proposals is open to all French research teams, regardless of the institution to which they belong or their status (public or private). They may be associated with international research teams.

International teams may submit proposals under the following conditions:

• at least one French research team is involved ;
• they have at least one research site in France;
• They must accept the OFB's or FRB's subsidy terms and conditions.

To date, more than half of the active ITTECOP projects are European or international consortia.

However, care must be taken to control the costs of any travel expenses.

Previous example: The interconnect project was led by the Eifer Institute in Karlsruhe in cooperation with ENGEES in Strasbourg. Please note: the language used for interim and final reports and for project monitoring by the administrative departments is French. Other languages may be used within each project.

Questions about eligible topics

Can a research project focus on one type of infrastructure (e.g. energy)?

As specified in appendix 2, the research project must involve several types of infrastructure, but it could be, for example, power lines and solar panels, which are in the energy category. However, a project focusing solely on solar panels is not eligible.

One of the major challenges of the call for proposals is to ensure that the research undertaken can benefit different types of infrastructure, and that a dialogue and reflection in this area is initiated.

Are telephone masts eligible in terms of infrastructure under this call for proposals?

No

cf part2.1 The infrastructures targeted by this RPA are: road, cycle and motorway networks, railways and inland waterways, cable transport, electricity and gas networks, renewable energy production infrastructures (with a possible comparison with traditional energy infrastructure issues) as well as territorial interfaces (river or sea ports, stations, airports). The rights of way of these infrastructures are included in the scope of this RPA, and are even particularly problematic for research on these subjects.

Is aquatic biodiversity an entry point, particularly with regard to the effects of infrastructure?

Yes, absolutely (e.g. dams, waterways). The marine environment is not, but the coastal environment remains eligible, particularly for port and airport infrastructures. On the other hand, offshore wind farms are not a priori eligible.

Is the marine environment an entry point?

The programme remains on land, but coastal infrastructures are accepted.

On SMPs

No SMPs are requested at the proposal stage, but a first version will be produced after 6 months.

Questions about the format of answers

Is there a drafting model for the scientific project?

The structure of the research project is described on page 20 of the APR. Only the framework of annexes is given for the financial aspects and the budget commitment.

Questions about the financial appendix

For the financial appendix, each partner must have upstream approval from its financial manager. This is a guarantee that the project, if selected, will have been shared internally within each organisation. If ever the validation deadline is a little short, we can tolerate sending the signed document later than the submission date, provided that this is clearly indicated at the time of submission.

Each project partner must comply with the rules set out in the financial appendix. This means that another source of funding must be found to cover the total costs of each partner's project. One of the project partners can provide this source of funding for the other partners and for itself. The funding it provides to the other partners must be indicated in the "other funding" column of the financial table for the corresponding partners. However, in the financial table for this funding partner, only its share of self-financing can and must be entered in the self-financing column.

Exhaustive summary statement of all justified expenditure

To receive funding, only the results forecast in the agreement and a financial statement are required. In the event of an audit, supporting documents may be requested.

At the end of the project, the statement of expenditure actually incurred in the form of an exhaustive summary of all justified expenditure must be signed and certified as true and sincere by the beneficiary. Support from an auditor or chartered accountant is possible, in which case the related costs may be included in the eligible expenditure, but this is not required.

For staff costs, this means time sheets (used to justify the time spent on the project) and pay slips for the staff involved. There is no difference between public and private organisations with regard to these supporting documents.

Consumables

Consumables should be entered under heading D "Equipment depreciation expenses".

Salary

Subsidy rates are a maximum of 80% of eligible costs. However, the salaries of permanent staff in public establishments (including EPICs) are not included in eligible costs, and therefore cannot be considered as part of self-financing.

FTEs should be indicated in terms of number of months (FTE requirements over the entire duration of the project and the corresponding staff costs).

As a private company, for personnel costs, can you confirm that it is indeed the non-environmental loaded costs that are eligible?

It is indeed the non-environmental loaded costs. The environment is taken into account in the related costs.

VAT

The funding application must be for VAT. Then, if the projects recover VAT, they are not entitled to invoice it and therefore the VAT-inclusive amount must correspond to the VAT-exclusive amount. Projects do not have to pay VAT on the grant received.

Fee expenses

With regard to the financial documents to be produced at the end of the project, can an audit certificate from an auditor or chartered accountant be requested? If so, are the fees eligible or are they deemed to be included in the 15% of related expenses/management costs?

Professional fees may be explicitly included in eligible expenditure.

Details of CESAB projects

Positioning is slightly different from that of ITTECOP, which allows international consortia to be financed. As a result, application forms must be submitted in English. The only nationality requirement is that one of the co-sponsors must belong to a French research organisation.

Support by a PhD student who will be recruited to accompany the teams.

Type of project: synthesis of existing data and knowledge. No field studies or experiments. It is above all a question of networking.