EURATOM-Research and Training Programme 2028-2032

Background

The Euratom Research and Training Programme (2021-2025) is a complementary funding programme to Horizon Europe which covers nuclear research and innovation. It uses the same instruments and rules for participation as Horizon Europe. 

The budget is €1.38 billion to implement the new programme for the period 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2025. The programme includes direct and indirect actions: the first ones are activities undertaken by the Commission’s Joint Research Centre whereas the second ones are research activities undertaken by multi-partner consortia.

The proposal for a 2028-2032 Euratom research and training programme is one of the instruments for delivering the policy ambitions presented by the Commission in the draft 2028-2034 long-term EU budget. 

The proposal takes into account the political priorities for 2024-2029 and aims to support EU competitiveness in line with the objectives of the European Competitiveness Fund and the Horizon Europe Framework Programme 2028-2034 by pursuing research on safe, innovative nuclear technologies for a prosperous, resilient and sustainable EU.

Key points

The EESC:

• calls for proper funding for companies of all sizes and the involvement of a range of actors in collaborative and cross-border research and innovation partnerships, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of European industrial ecosystems and the EU’s economic security;
• perceives the development of fusion energy to be a crucial funding item of the Programme and considers it important to support the EU’s role in ITER, with the aim of strengthening the European fusion energy ecosystem in the global context and accelerating the market uptake and deployment of fusion energy in the EU;
• emphasises the need for proper funding for the development of other nuclear technologies in the energy sector, including Small and Advanced Modular Reactors (SMRs and AMRs), advanced fuels and materials, and safe solutions for the management of radioactive waste and spent fuel, with specific emphasis on the nuclear fuel cycle;
• encourages focusing resources on the development and uptake of nuclear technologies for non-power purposes, such as applications in the medical, space, agriculture and industrial sectors; considers risk prevention and preparedness and the protection of people and the environment against safety and security risks as cross-cutting objectives of the Programme and calls for awareness to be raised of nuclear issues through communication and interaction with civil society representatives;
• calls for due investment in the development of skills and competences in the nuclear field, with the aim of ensuring the availability of both world-class talent and a qualified workforce; to this end, encourages nuclear issues to be integrated into education at all levels and the attractiveness of nuclear professions to be promoted, while also enhancing cross-border mobility and networking through high-level research and technology infrastructure.

Additional information

Section: Transport, Energy, Infrastructure and the Information Society (TEN)

Opinion number: TEN/864

Opinion type: Mandatory

Referral: COM(2025) 594 final 2025/0594 NLE COM(2025) 594 final 2025/0594 NLE

Rapporteur: Alena Mastantuono (Group I - Czech Republic)

Date of adoption by section: 9 March 2026

Result of the vote: 71 in favour, 4 against, 2 abstentions

Date of adoption in plenary: 18-19 March 2026

Result of the vote: XXX in favour, X against, X abstentions

Contact

Marco Pezzani

Press Officer

Tel.: +32 2 546 9793 | Mob: +32 470 881 903

E-mail: marco.pezzani@eesc.europa.eu 

Albert Precup

Administrator

Tel.: +32 546 9326

E-mail: albert.precup@eesc.europa.eu