Following the winding up of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 2002, the Fund for Research on Coal and Steel (FRCS) is the first agency of the European Union – complementary to the 7th Framework programme of Technological Research and Development – that funds actions and studies relating to all the aspects linked to the coal and steel industries (production, application, re-conversion, safety on the workplace, protection of the environment and reduction of polluting emissions). Last week, the European Commission adopted a draft decision of the Council on the financial endowment of the Fund (some 60 million euros per year to 2013 to be allocated on the basis of calls for bids (with a deadline of 15 September each year) and on the contents of programmes submitted for subsidization by the Fund. Pilot and demonstration projects will benefit from a FRCS contribution equivalent to 50% of the overall budget, without limitations on the number of participants or on the quantum than is eligible to be financed by Brussels.
