Research Fund for Coal and Steel RFCS: a European success story

In 2002 the European Union (EU) established the Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS) to exploit the interest of the capital that was left after termination of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). The first period of existence of the RFCS has been analysed by a team of experts from the coal and steel sector and their findings collected in a Monitoring and Assessment Report. This report describes the way the RFCS is managed by the European Commission in terms of setting up of priorities for annual calls, evaluating the project proposals and ranking them for funding. Also the way the Technical Groups monitor the progress of the projects is analysed. The report contains suggestions for further improvement. In the Assessment part the M&A Report describes 198 projects that have been finished in the first period of RFCS existence. Benefits achieved by the beneficiaries are collected and where possible expressed in financial terms. A method is introduced to calculate the potential benefit of the RFCS projects when the outcome would have been applied not only at the beneficiaries' company but at all processes, products and industrial installations in the coal and steel sector of the EU. This information is of direct interest to researchers, technology and R&D directors and company Executive Board members as it illustrates the multiplier achieved from investment in collaborative R&D in the coal and steel sector in the EU.