On October 30, 2025, the HeatInvest project officially launched with its online Kick-off Meeting, coordinated by the Regional Development Fund of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace (Greece). The project, funded by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) under the I3 Instrument, brings together regional innovation agencies, clusters, and energy associations from across Europe to enhance cluster development and investment readiness within the heat-pump and geothermal energy value chain.
During the Kick-off, partners presented the overall work plan and shared initial steps for collaboration across four main work packages.
STRIA South Transdanubian Innovation Agency is responsible for Task 3.1 – “Funding opportunities to enhance interregional collaboration activities.” Within this task, STRIA will lead the development of a comprehensive funding database covering EU, national, and regional sources relevant to heat-pump and geothermal innovation actors. The database will be integrated into the project website and updated regularly to guide partners in identifying suitable financing opportunities. STRIA will also contribute to the HeatInvest exploitation plan, ensuring the long-term sustainability of project results.
The meeting concluded with the alignment of technical and communication plans among all partners and the scheduling of upcoming WP meetings. The consortium will next reconvene for the first interregional coordination session to advance the WP3 activities.
