Expected Outcome:

Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following outcomes:

• Shortened development time of battery cells and battery systems by minimising the experimental testing effort, thus reducing the overall costs and the time to market;
• Increased battery reliability and safety through better understanding of ageing, and safety-relevant (deactivation, degradation, failure) mechanisms;
• Acceleration of a more reliable verification and validation of new solutions contributing to increased user acceptability (safety, performance & costs) and competitiveness of the European battery value chain;
• Standardised battery system testing & validation approaches focussing on the combination of physical and virtual test methodologies.

Scope:

This topic aims to reduce development costs and time to market of new battery systems by accelerated multi-physical and virtual testing. Current test strategies are still very time consuming and costly due to the need to understand the impact of multi-physical operational loads (electric, thermal, mechanical, etc.), potential failure modes, ageing and misuse on the safety and reliability of battery cells and modules.

To overcome these barriers, new multi-physical test strategies supplemented by virtual testing are required taking into account the most impactful parameters on ageing, reliability and safety and their dependencies.

Proposals are expected to address Electric Vehicle (EV) batteries and are encouraged to develop techniques and methodologies which are applicable to other forms of electro-mobility as well as stationary applications (including second life).

Proposals are expected to address and demonstrate all the following activities:

• Understand and describe the impact of multi-physical operational loads, failure modes, ageing and misuse on battery reliability and safety highlighting the dependencies between them in order to design the most adequate testing methods and parameters;
• Derive advanced operating profiles for testing and development of novel X-in-the-Loop (XiL) test environments for multi-physical and accelerated testing addressing electrical, thermal and mechanical loads at the same time;
• Combine physics-based with data-driven test strategies enabling reliable virtual and physical battery testing considering specific applications;
• Develop simplified test strategies reducing the number of tests and their complexity while improving battery safety and reliability. Synergies between different battery chemistries, including next generation battery designs and sizes must be exploited where possible, allowing to re-use or scale test results from cell to system level;
• Research activities are also expected to lead to advanced response strategies for damaged and aged batteries. Furthermore, a contribution to the European safety classification system is expected by developing standards for this safety classification. To this end, proposals are expected to establish contact and exploit complementarities with selected proposals under topic HORIZON-CL5-2025-04-D5-03 “Safe post-crash management of road Light Duty Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) (2ZERO Partnership)” with regards to monitoring techniques for safety risks, algorithms for defining state of health and remaining useful life.

Activities covering the following aspects are encouraged:

• Development of virtual methods for full system validation using physical sub-system results;
• Development, exploitation, and harmonisation of advanced battery cell or pack measurement and diagnostic methods for enhancing the data depth and breadth over what is currently available. Definition of performance indicators relating to battery degradation and safety, and development of methods for the validation of digital models.
• Application of AI and generative AI for the definition of the design of experimental and testing strategies to increase the outcome of experimental testing campaigns, in order to accelerate achievement of significant conclusions, and to thus reduce testing time and effort.

Whenever the expected exploitation of project results entails developing, creating, manufacturing and marketing a product or process, or in creating and providing a service, the plan for the exploitation and dissemination of results must include a strategy for such exploitation. The exploitation plans are expected to include preliminary plans for scalability, commercialisation, and deployment (feasibility study, business plan) indicating the possible funding sources to be potentially used (in particular the Innovation Fund).

Proposals are expected to also establish cooperation and complementarity with the selected proposal under the topic HORIZON-CL5-2023-D2-02-03: “Creating a digital passport to track battery materials, optimise battery performance and life, validate recycling, and promote a new business model based on data sharing (Batt4EU Partnership)” with regards to safety and ageing information as part of the battery passport.

Proposals could consider the involvement of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC)[1] whose contribution could consist of performing experimental or desk-top research on battery performance and/or safety. For further information on the JRC’s possible contribution to the projects, please, search for additional publicly available information on the JRC’s website (EU Science Hub) on the NCP portal, or request specific information from the JRC (JRC-NCP-Network@ec.europa.eu)

JRC shall assure that all the other applicants receive the same information on the JRC’s possible contribution to the project (e.g., via the topic-specific FAQs under the Funding and Tenders Portal).

Projects are expected to collaborate and contribute to the activities of the Coordination and Support Action defined under the topic HORIZON-CL5-2025-D2-02-06.

To strengthen the European battery ecosystem, projects are expected to use materials, products and equipment produced in EU Member States and countries associated to Horizon Europe, unless it is demonstrated that no valid option exists. The procurement strategies should be described in the proposal, especially and to the furthest extent possible the place of production of the elements.

This topic implements the co-programmed European Partnership on Batteries (Batt4EU). As such, projects resulting from this topic will be expected to report on the results to the European Partnership on Batteries (Batt4EU) in support of the monitoring of its KPIs.

AI Based Application Success Predictor

1️⃣ Strong, Mission-Aligned Impact (Most Important Across EC Calls)

The EC is impact-driven: proposals must show how the project will:

Solve a major European or global societal challenge

Deliver measurable, lasting benefits for EU citizens

Produce outputs that can be used by policymakers, industry, or society

Align with Horizon Europe missions, priorities, and strategic agendas

Predictor: Clear, quantifiable, EU-level impact → strongest scoring factor.

2️⃣ Clear, Ambitious, but Achievable Objectives

Successful proposals show:

2–4 well-defined objectives linked to the Work Programme call text

Clearly articulated research questions or innovation goals

Logical, realistic expected outcomes and deliverables

Feasible scientific and technical approaches

Predictor: Balanced ambition + feasibility.

3️⃣ Excellent, Cutting-Edge Science or Innovation

For RIA/IA/CSA or ERC-level grants, reviewers expect:

High novelty and innovation

Strong grounding in current state-of-the-art

Clear advancement beyond existing approaches

Solid theoretical or experimental foundations

Robust methodological design

Predictor: Scientific excellence is essential for competitive scoring.

4️⃣ Strong Consortium with Complementary Expertise

EC proposals are consortium-driven (except ERC/EIC Accelerator).

High-scoring consortia:

Cover all needed competencies (science, industry, policy, ethics, dissemination)

Include SMEs, industry partners, NGOs, and public bodies when relevant

Are geographically diverse across EU Member States and Associated Countries

Demonstrate strong leadership and communication structures

Predictor: Well-constructed consortium with clear roles.

5️⃣ Clear Pathway From Outputs → Outcomes → Impact

Evaluators look for a credible trajectory showing:

How research leads to specific outputs (data, tools, prototypes)

How outputs lead to uptake or use

How use produces societal, economic, scientific, or policy impact

Strong Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and impact metrics

Predictor: Clearly mapped impact pathway.

6️⃣ Strong Implementation Plan (Work Packages, Deliverables, Gantt Chart)

Winning proposals have:

Well-designed Work Packages (WPs) with clear scope and responsibilities

Interdependencies identified and risk-mitigation strategies

Detailed milestones and deliverables

Feasible budget aligned with tasks

Strong project management plan

Predictor: High implementation quality boosts the “Excellence” and “Implementation” scores.

7️⃣ Policy Relevance and Contribution to EU Strategies

Especially critical for health, climate, digital, and social calls.

Proposals score higher when they link to:

EU Cancer Mission

EU Green Deal

Digital Europe strategy

EU Biodiversity Strategy

EU Health Union & One Health

Open Science & FAIR data mandates

Predictor: Clear alignment with EU policies.

8️⃣ Strong Stakeholder & Citizen Engagement (Especially in Social & Health Missions)

EC values inclusivity:

Patient groups

Civil society organizations

Public sector bodies

Regulatory agencies

Citizen science components

Stakeholder letters of intent or commitment strengthen credibility.

Predictor: Engagement adds impact and relevance.

9️⃣ Robust Data Management, Open Science, and Ethics

Mandatory components include:

FAIR Data Management Plan

Open access publications

Ethics self-assessment

GDPR compliance

Data security, governance, and ethical approvals

Animal-use reduction and justification (if applicable)

Predictor: Clear compliance with ethical and data obligations.

10️⃣ Well-Justified Budget and Resource Allocation

Budget must be:

Proportional to tasks

Transparent and reasonable

Efficiently distributed among partners

Free from padding or unjustified costs

Predictor: Realistic budgets improve Implementation scores.

🚫 COMMON PITFALLS THAT LEAD TO EC GRANT REJECTION