The European Innovation Council (EIC) and the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) have designated carbon dioxide removal and carbon dioxide utilization as priority fields within the 2027 EIC Accelerator Challenges. Based in the European Union, the program has earmarked an indicative budget of approximately €50 million ($55 million) to fund qualifying start-ups and small-to-medium enterprises developing breakthrough solutions. Carbon removal and utilization will stand alongside three other priority focus areas for 2027: advanced ocean observation technologies, climate-neutral and smart cities, and fusion power plant innovations.

The primary challenge addressed by this initiative is the financial and operational barrier emerging climate-tech enterprises face when moving from early validation to industrial deployment. Durable carbon removal approaches regularly confront substantial capital requirements, technical risks during scale-up, and uncertain long-term revenue streams. Without dedicated public financing and market-access support, high-integrity developers struggle to bridge the gap between pilot operations and commercial viability, hindering broader European Union climate objectives and industrial resilience.

To resolve these constraints, the 2027 call provides direct funding to eligible pathways, including biocharBiochar is a carbon-rich material created from biomass decomposition in low-oxygen conditions. It has important applications in environmental remediation, soil improvement, agriculture, carbon sequestration, energy storage, and sustainable materials, promoting efficiency and reducing waste in various contexts while addressing climate change challenges. More, direct air capture with carbon storage (DACCS), bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BioCCS), enhanced rock weathering, direct ocean capture, alkalinity enhancement, product mineralization, carbon capture and utilization technologies, and monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) tools. Solutions dedicated to storing captured fossil carbon dioxide as gas without chemical transformation and technologies for hydrogen production are excluded from the challenge.

Through this funding, successful applicants will secure the capital needed to test carbon removal systems at an industrial scale and bring their offerings to market. In addition, selected enterprises will receive tailored Business Acceleration Services, granting facilitated entry to the proposed EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation (CRCF) Buyers’ Club. This mechanism will connect developers directly with committed private buyers, helping validate unit demand, build reliable off-take revenue, and solidify the business case for carbon removal across the continent.