Abstract
Europe’s citizens rely on phones, laptops, cars, hospitals, energy, networks and defense, all powered by semiconductors made from silicon, gallium, germanium and indium. EVEN-CLOSER targets the circular semiconductor and advanced electronics value chain, crucial for EU competitiveness. EVEN-CLOSER Closer is a three years project (2025-2028) that brings together 44 partners from over 20 regions. The project unites SMEs, industries, researchers and regional authorities to boost urban mining, enable automotive electronics repairability, scale solar panel recycling, improve hydrometallurgical materials recovery, track and connect supply chain players (including defense), manufacture with recycled silicon, and make circular economy the startup standard for tomorrow’s growth.
By matching demand-side innovation needs with supply-side technological capabilities, EVEN-Closer supports the preparation of concrete business cases and interregional investment pipelines, contributing to EU competitiveness, cohesion objectives and the scaling of circular and sustainable industrial solutions.
EVEN-CLOSER brings together over 20 regions from more than 15 countries, covering Less Developed, Transition, and More Developed Regions across Southern, Central, Northern, Insular Europe and an Overseas Territory (Aruba), including Italy, France, Slovakia, Poland, Cyprus, Belgium, the Netherlands, Greece, Finland, Malta, Latvia, Spain and Portugal. The partnership spans More Developed Regions (e.g. Île-de-France, Lombardia, Zuid-Holland, Comunidad de Madrid), Transition Regions (e.g. Lazio, Overijssel, Gelderland), and Less Developed Regions (e.g. Calabria, Sicilia, Sardegna, Łódzkie, Latvia, Malta, Região Autónoma dos Açores), ensuring strong territorial complementarity.
This wide geographical scope enables effective interregional knowledge transfer, investment diffusion, and value-chain integration.
The partnership includes SMEs, industrial actors, research organizations, universities, public authorities, and NGOs, forming a full quadruple-helix ecosystem. Cooperation is grounded in complementary Smart Specialization Strategies (S3), notably smart manufacturing, circular economy, waste management, advanced materials, microelectronics, and digitalization.
Less Developed and Transition Regions benefit directly from pilot plants, upgraded e-waste collection and recycling systems, access to advanced technologies, workforce upskilling, and integration into European semiconductor value chains. More Developed Regions contribute industrial capacity, research excellence, and market access, ensuring scalability and industrial relevance.
EVEN-CLOSER capitalises on strong prior collaboration within EU initiatives such as CLOSER (I3), DIGIPRIME, BATMASS, CIRPASS, CRUSADE, and REFLOW. These shared experiences ensure trust, operational readiness, and rapid replication of results across regions, reinforcing EU cohesion and competitiveness.
EVEN-CLOSER delivers integrated processes, product, service, and business-model innovations across the circular semiconductor ecosystem. Key innovations include advanced urban mining systems, AI-driven component sorting, high-purity recovery of Silicon, Gallium, Indium, and Germanium, circular PCB repair and manufacturing, photovoltaic recycling, and secure Digital Product Passports for sensitive and defense-related electronics.
The project advances solutions from TRL 6–7 to TRL 8–9, enabling near-industrial demonstrators and investment-ready deployment. Innovation is strongly aligned with EU priorities on the green and digital transitions and smart manufacturing, combining low-impact chemical processes, energy-efficient purification, AI, digital traceability, and post-quantum cybersecurity.
EVEN-CLOSER directly supports the objectives of the Green Deal, Critical Raw Materials Act, Chips Act, Circular Economy Action Plan, and Net Zero Industry Act by reducing reliance on virgin materials, lowering emissions, and strengthening Europe’s strategic autonomy in semiconductors.
Replication and scaling are ensured through modular pilot plants, mobile recovery units, interoperable digital platforms, and an EU-wide startup acceleration programme, responding to clear market needs for secure, circular, and resilient semiconductor supply chains.
EVEN-CLOSER comprises 15 investment-ready Demonstration Investments (DIs) structured across four complementary investment areas, covering the full circular semiconductor value chain. These include e-waste collection and pre-treatment, repair and disassembly, AI-based sorting, critical raw material recovery, photovoltaic recycling, polysilicon and monocrystalline silicon production, circular PCB manufacturing, logistics, skills development, and startup acceleration.
Key pilots involve urban mining systems in Less Developed Regions, pilot lines for gallium, indium and germanium recovery, an advanced PV recycling plant in Calabria, secure Digital Product Passport infrastructures, and pilot production of circular silicon devices in Latvia, Malta, and the Netherlands.
Investments are deployed across Italy, Greece, Poland, Slovakia, Portugal (Azores), Latvia, Malta, Spain, France, Germany, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Aruba, ensuring balanced territorial impact.
Results are applied in semiconductors, renewable energy, electronics manufacturing, automotive, aerospace, defense, and digital industries. SMEs play a central role as technology developers, pilot operators, recyclers, manufacturers, and digital solution providers, ensuring strong market uptake, bankability, and long-term economic impact.