On May 20–21, 2025, Brussels hosted two key events dedicated to low-carbon innovation and the future of the energy transition in Europe.

The first event, held on May 20, was the public conference "Unlocking Low-Carbon Innovation: From Horizon Projects to Market Deployment", organised by four Coordination and Support Action (CSA) projects funded under the topic HORIZON-CL5-2023-D2-01-07: ‘Support for the deployment of R&I results for climate mitigation. Synergies with the ETS Innovation Fund'.

The conference offered an open forum for exchange between EU institutions, industrial stakeholders, and project developers.

CIAOTECH – part of the PNO Group – actively participated in the event through Andrea Rausa, EU Funding Coordinator and coordinator of the LEADS project. Rausa opened the conference by highlighting the main barriers faced by project developers in accessing the InnovationFund, and proposed practical recommendations to facilitate the application process.

In the afternoon of the same day, a breakout session was held focusing on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and its development within the Innovation Fund. The session, moderated by Andrea Rausa, provided an important opportunity for discussion with European stakeholders, aiming to share challenges, opportunities, and concrete approaches to accelerate the deployment of CCS technologies at an industrial scale.

On May 21, discussions continued  with a technical meeting involving  representatives from the five CSAs only. Once again, CIAOTECH had the opportunity to present the achievements and future perspectives of the LEADS project, contributing to inter-project dialogue and the identification of strategic synergies to strengthen support for low-carbon innovation in Europe.

Through its active engagement, CIAOTECH reaffirms its leading role in the European sustainable innovation landscape, supporting companies in transforming R&D concepts into tangible, market-ready industrial solutions.