Summary of "Webinar Edital Economia Circular e Cidades Sustentáveis"
Overview
This webinar summarized FINEP’s new non‑refundable subsidy call “Economia Circular e Cidades Sustentáveis” (R$150 million). The session explained the call’s objectives, eligible projects and partners, funding rules, application steps, evaluation criteria, monitoring and common questions.
Context and purpose
- FINEP opened a grant program focused on circular economy and sustainable cities with R$150 million allocated.
- The call is part of broader public policies and programs (Ecological Transformation Plan, neo‑industrialization initiatives, National Circular Economy Strategy, and prior “More Innovation” rounds) to promote innovation, decarbonization and inclusive circular value chains in Brazil.
- The webinar explained the call’s objectives, rules and how to apply.
High‑level goals and priorities
The call prioritizes projects that:
- Apply circular economy approaches across full product life cycles (design for resource efficiency, reuse, remanufacturing, value retention in supply chains).
- Advance renewable chemistry (use of biomass, co‑products, waste to replace fossil‑based chemicals).
- Stimulate innovation in sanitation and water reuse (sensors, digitalization, decentralized systems, removal of emerging contaminants).
- Encourage sustainable housing and public spaces (new materials, energy efficiency, thermal comfort, BIM‑based optimization).
- Include social dimensions: strengthen participation and income generation for waste‑picker cooperatives and other social partners.
- Promote regional inclusion: at least 30% of the budget is earmarked for projects carried out in the North, Northeast and Midwest.
Target projects and technological scope
- The grant funds projects with technological risk — typically development from lab/proof‑of‑concept to pilot or prototype (approximately TRL from bench up to pilot; some lines allow up to TRL 8). It is not intended to fund full industrial scale commercialization (TRL 9).
- Thematic lines include:
- Product design and value retention
- Renewable chemistry (excluding some areas covered by other calls, such as biofuels, pharmaceuticals, fertilizers, pesticides)
- Water & sanitation (including small/decentralized systems)
- Sustainable housing and public spaces
- Digital / Industry 4.0 solutions for utilities
- Projects targeting small municipalities (communities <50,000 inhabitants) can reach higher TRL in in‑field testing.
Who can apply and partnership rules
- Eligible applicants: companies of all sizes (the grant finances companies). Participation of at least one ICT (institution of science & technology — university, research institute, private R&D center) as service provider is mandatory.
- Co‑executors (other companies) are allowed and can be beneficiaries of grant‑supported expenses.
- A “network” arrangement (lead company + ≥2 co‑executors + ICT) is encouraged. Networks can increase supported ceilings and reduce counterpart requirements.
- Waste‑picker cooperatives and other social partners are encouraged and scored with extra points if formally engaged (letters of expression of interest required). Cooperatives typically cannot be the contracting party — companies must sign the grant agreement — but cooperatives may be formal partners/beneficiaries.
- ICTs may be private or public but must not belong to the same economic group as the proponent (to avoid conflicts).
Funding rules, ceilings and counterpart
- Total budget: R$150 million; 30% initially reserved for projects in North, Northeast and Midwest.
- Typical requested amounts (from FINEP): commonly R$5 million (reference minimum) up to R$20 million (usual maximum request). These figures refer to the grant amount requested, not total project cost.
- Network/consortium arrangements (with ≥2 co‑executors) can increase the supported ceiling and reduce or zero the counterpart in specific cases.
- Counterpart (private co‑funding) varies by company size: it starts low for smaller companies (e.g., ~5%) and rises up to 50% for large companies (effectively 1:1 funding for large firms). Financial capacity and counterpart determination use the largest revenue among participants/economic groups.
- There is no strict upper limit on how much of the grant can be allocated to ICT services, but FINEP expects the applicant company to remain the project protagonist (not 100% of resources going to ICT).
Application process — practical steps and required documentation
The submission and documentation process is two‑stage:
-
Basic registration on FINEP’s platform
- Company details, economic group, CNPJ, tech team, and minimal documentation.
-
Full project proposal submission
- Technical description, schedule, budget, ICT services, co‑executors, expected TRL progression, and social/territorial impacts (texts and numeric fields).
Mandatory attachments and evidence:
- Company bylaws / articles of incorporation and accountant‑signed financial statements.
- Project video (max 10 minutes) showing the project and infrastructure to be used (lab, factory, office). Short phone videos are acceptable; avoid generic corporate marketing videos.
- Letters of interest / commitment from social partners (cooperatives) if claiming extra points for social partnerships.
Submission limits and timing:
- Each company may participate with up to two proposals in different thematic areas of the call. If a project is rejected, a third submission may be allowed. Duplicate submissions in the same line are not permitted.
- The call operates on a rolling/continuous evaluation — proposals are evaluated as received until the final deadline. Applicants should confirm the final cutoff date on the call page.
Documentation and support:
- Read the full regulation, manuals and FAQs on the call page. FINEP provides tutorials and responds to questions via a dedicated mailbox (typical turnaround reported ~24 hours).
Evaluation and selection criteria
Evaluation has two phases:
- Qualification: formal eligibility checks, documentation, financial capacity, and mandatory ICT participation.
- Merit (technical scoring): scored against 10 criteria. Key points include:
- Degree of innovation and technological uncertainty.
- Scope and impact (projects should be at least “new to Brazil” and preferably have national relevance).
- Company innovation trajectory and team qualifications (masters/PhDs are valued).
- Budget composition: preference for personnel, specialized services, consumables and R&D activities over heavy capex (equipment and installations are fundable but composition matters).
- Relevance to sectoral/industrial policy, potential to alter market positions or supply chains, and depth of ICT partnership.
- Internationalization potential.
- Externalities: social, environmental, technological benefits and regional dissemination of knowledge.
Call‑specific additional criteria:
- Regionalization extra point for projects implemented in North, Northeast or Midwest.
- Social partnerships extra point for projects formally involving cooperatives/waste‑pickers.
- Minimum score threshold is 14; extra points can be decisive.
Eliminatory criteria:
- Some requirements are eliminatory (for example: being “new to Brazil” and showing minimum technological uncertainty). If these are not met, a proposal can be excluded.
Fundable items and restrictions
- Most R&D expenses needed for the project are fundable and should be detailed in the budget.
- Restrictions:
- Grants do not directly fund pro‑labore or profit sharing.
- Scholarships are not directly funded by the subsidy (companies can hire personnel or pay ICTs as service providers; ICTs may use funds internally according to their rules).
- ICT costs can be recognized via invoices, agreements or receipts. FINEP will track payments via dedicated project bank accounts.
Contracting, monitoring and disbursement
- Approved grantees must open an exclusive current account for FINEP funds and another for counterpart funds.
- Disbursements occur after proof of counterpart and periodic execution reports; projects are monitored and may be visited. Reporting cadence is typically annual and requires evidence of expenses.
- Projects can be discontinued during execution if technological dead ends are reached; justified discontinuation is accepted as part of R&D risk and learning.
Frequently asked practical points (Q&A highlights)
- Scholarships / “Nova Talentos”: FINEP funds the company’s project; companies contract ICTs as service providers. Scholarships paid internally by an ICT are not direct grant items.
- ICT contracting: invoices or formal agreements are acceptable. In complex/network arrangements a minimum allocation (e.g., ~5%) to ICTs may apply.
- Cooperatives: can participate, contribute to testing or material supply, and provide extra points, but companies must generally be the contracting grantee. Cooperatives must submit an expression of interest to claim extra points.
- Studies vs. development: the grant expects technology development leading to prototypes or demonstrators; standalone studies are generally not the intended primary use (though lifecycle analyses and supporting studies are allowed as part of an R&D project).
- Non‑viability: project discontinuation is permissible with justification; the program accepts R&D risk.
How to get help / where to ask questions
- Read the call regulation, manuals and FAQ on the official FINEP call page and watch tutorial videos.
- Send technical or interpretive questions to the dedicated mailbox cited in the webinar (reported as cp_economiacircular@fep.gov.br). Confirm the exact address on the official call page before sending.
- FINEP commits to answering submitted questions; typical reported turnaround is about 24 hours.
Speakers and sources
Speakers identified in the webinar subtitles:
- Fabio — event host / moderator
- Henrique Vasques — Manager of Financing and Projects, FINEP
- Carolina Grotera — Undersecretary for Ecological Transformation, Executive Secretariat, Ministry of Finance
- Daniel Gomes de Almeida Filho — Secretary of Technological Development and Innovation, MCTI
- Eduardo Rocha Dias Santos — Representative, Ministry of Environment and Climate Change
- Lucas Ramalho Maciel — Deputy Secretary of Green Economy, Decarbonization and Bioindustry, MDIC
Notes
- Subtitles contained occasional name/acronym inconsistencies (FINEP / FNEP / FEP). This summary standardizes to “FINEP” as the funding agency and preserves the speakers’ institutional roles as stated during the session.
- Always check the official call page and full regulation for the definitive rules, exact deadlines and the confirmed contact email before applying.
Category
Educational
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