Chile extends its participation in the Eureka Network, one of the main spaces for technological cooperation worldwide. This agreement, signed in Zurich by the executive vice-president of Corfo, José Miguel Benavente, extends until 2030 the country’s presence in this network that unites 45 nations to promote research, development and innovation projects.
National productivity and cooperation in the Eureka Network
The decision to maintain the link with Eureka responds to a long-term strategy promoted by the Ministry of Economy and Corfo to reverse the fall in Total Factor Productivity experienced between 2010 and 2015. Since Chile’s official return to the network in 2022, resources have been mobilized to finance initiatives with a strong technological component.
In the last two years, six projects of Chilean companies have been promoted through the so-called “Network Projects“, in collaboration with partners from Spain, France and Austria. The total investment exceeds US$ 3,800 million, of which US$ 1,026 million come from Corfo. For every peso contributed from public funds, approximately three pesos have been leveraged in international capital.
In turn, the “Clusters” calls have opened alliances with Slovenia, Luxembourg, Turkey, the United Kingdom, South Korea and Germany, totaling more than 11 billion dollars mobilized. This collaboration scheme has made it possible to connect Chile’s technological capabilities with advanced ecosystems in different regions.
Among them, the alliance between Viña Concha y Toro and the French company Mercier Frères has led to the generation of drought- and disease-resistant vines, applying genomics and CRISPR/Cas tools. In the mining sector, Servilinares is working together with W. Diamant Herramientas de España to transform copper slag into high-purity iron powder using hydrogen, reducing CO₂ emissions.
Rubtec Chile is leading the MineCycle project in conjunction with European partners, developing a modular technology for the recycling of off-road mining tires. This system integrates ultra-high pressure water cutting, cryogenic processes and artificial intelligence, aiming at a more efficient and sustainable mining.
For Corfo, the extension of this agreement reaffirms the country’s commitment to a knowledge-based economy and transnational collaboration. The next Eureka calls will allow channeling new proposals focused on energy transition, bioeconomy and circularity, in line with the productive challenges faced by Chile.
Source and photo: Corfo