Some 185 SMEs from 26 countries have been selected for funding under Phase 1 of the latest round of the Horizon 2020 SME Instrument.

A total of 1,284 SMEs have now been selected under Phase 1 of the programme since its launch on 1 January 2014.

The European Commission had received 2,057 proposals under Phase 1 by 25 November 2015, the fourth and last cut-off date for that year. A total of 175 projects will be funded (multiple SMEs can be involved in one project), bringing the success rate of funded proposals up to 8.4%.

The winning projects will each be given €50,000 in order to finance feasibility studies for new products that can disrupt the market. Participants will also receive three days of free business coaching.

Most of the projects funded were in the area of low carbon energy systems, followed by food production and processing, and biomarkers and medical devices.

Spanish SMEs proved the most successful with 39 beneficiaries accepted for funding, and then firms from Italy (37) and the UK (20).

The results for Phase 2 of the SME Instrument, where companies receive funding of up to €2.5m to make their products ready for the market, will follow around mid-February.

The next cut-off for Phase 1 is 24 February.

Go here for a full list of beneficiaries.

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