The European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), has launched a new EU-funded call for proposals worth up to €1.7 million to strengthen Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) across the Atlantic and Black Sea basins. The funding is made available under the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF).
Maritime Spatial Planning plays a crucial role in coordinating the sustainable use of Europe’s seas. It ensures balance between marine protection, blue economy development, and human activities such as offshore energy, fisheries, shipping, and tourism. The Commission stresses that strategic cross-border cooperation in MSP is essential, especially across shared sea basins.
This call aims to support EU Member States in implementing, monitoring, and revising their maritime spatial plans.
Objectives of the Call
Projects funded under this action should develop innovative solutions to tackle MSP challenges that Member States encounter, including:
Ensuring consistent, comparable marine data
Improving cooperation between coastal countries
Addressing cross-border environmental and socio-economic pressures
Supporting sea-basin-level coordination
Proposals may focus on specific parts or sub‑regions of the Atlantic or Black Sea.
Key Dates
Deadline for proposals: 15 April 2026, 17:00 CEST
Evaluation period: April-May 2026
Evaluation results expected: June 2026
Grant Agreement signature: September–December 2026
Applications must be submitted electronically through the Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Submission System.
Additional materials - including the full call text, guidance documents, and background information - are available on the CINEA call webpage.