You do not need a €50 million project to be part of an IPCEI. The framework has three tiers of participation, and choosing the right one is a strategic decision, not a formality.
A direct participant carries a project of typically at least €50 million in eligible costs, is named in the Commission decision, and can receive aid up to 100% of its funding gap. In return it takes on the full obligations: a complete funding-gap model, spillover commitments, annual reporting and, for large first-industrial-deployment aid, the claw-back mechanism.
An associated partner runs a smaller project linked to a direct participant. It is funded by its own Member State under ordinary rules, usually the GBER with its fixed aid intensities, so the money is smaller, but so is the paperwork, and the company sits inside the same cross-border ecosystem, with access to the consortium's knowledge flows and supply relationships.
An indirect partner receives no aid at all: suppliers, customers and research organisations that work with the participants. That sounds like the losing ticket, but it is how many companies build the track record and relationships that turn into direct participation in the next wave.
The three tiers of IPCEI participation compared.
Choosing your tier
The choice is driven by three questions: can you credibly carry a ≥€50 million project with an important own contribution; does your project contain enough R&D and technical risk to justify funding-gap aid; and can your organisation sustain the multi-year design phase? If any answer is no, associated partnership is not a consolation prize. It is the risk-proportionate entry.
The takeaway. Pick the tier that matches your balance sheet and your R&D depth, not your ambition. A failed direct application buys nothing; a solid associated partnership buys a seat in the value chain and an option on the next wave.
Sources
– DETE (Ireland) – Call for expressions of interest: IPCEI AST & AI-CIC (2026)