Minister Dillon launches €1.5 million Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme
Minister of State at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment with special responsibility for the Circular Economy, Alan Dillon TD, has today announced the launch of the 2026 Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme (CEIGS), with total funding increasing from €650,000 to €1.5 million.
The 2026 funding round will open on 14 September 2026, with individual grants expected to range from €50,000 to €150,000.
The increased investment represents a significant expansion of Government support for circular economy innovation and will help businesses and social enterprises to develop and implement practical solutions that reduce waste, extend the life of products and materials, and make better use of resources.
Launching the 2026 scheme, Minister Dillon said:
“Ireland’s transition to a circular economy presents a major opportunity to reduce waste and emissions, conserve valuable resources and build a more sustainable and resilient economy. That is why I am delighted to increase funding for the Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme from €650,000 to €1.5 million in 2026.
“This is real investment in circular innovation. It will help organisations move beyond ideas and develop practical solutions that can be tested, implemented and scaled. Whether it is redesigning products, increasing reuse and repair, reducing food waste, finding new uses for materials or developing innovative circular business models, this funding will help turn innovation into action.
“The Circular Economy Strategy 2026–2028 sets out an ambitious programme of action across Government and across key sectors of our economy. The Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme is an important part of delivering that ambition. By investing directly in innovators, businesses and communities, we are helping to build the solutions, business models and technologies that will make circularity a reality across Ireland.”
The Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme is a Government initiative designed to support innovative projects that advance the circular economy in Ireland. Since its launch in April 2021, the scheme has awarded over €2.4 million to 50 projects, supporting innovation across areas including food waste, plastics, single-use plastics, packaging, construction, textiles and general waste.
The 2026 scheme will place a strong emphasis on projects that can demonstrate practical implementation and measurable circular economy impacts, including approaches that keep products, components and materials in use for longer and at their highest possible value.
The increased funding is aligned with the implementation of Ireland’s Circular Economy Strategy 2026–2028, which places a stronger emphasis on moving from policy development to practical delivery and identifies innovation as an important enabler of Ireland’s circular transition.
For 2026, the scheme will be administered in partnership with CIRCULÉIRE and its secretariat, Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR). CIRCULÉIRE is Ireland’s Circular Innovation Network, an industry‑led, cross-sectoral, public‑private platform supporting Irish businesses to capture circular advantage since 2020. CIRCULÉIRE will manage the CEIGS application, evaluation, administrative processes, and will steward successful awardees as they deliver on their projects.
Dr Geraldine Brennan, IMR’s Director of Circular Economy Innovation, said:
“CIRCULÉIRE has evolved the Fund to make it more accessible and focused on impact-oriented implementation. Through broadened eligibility criteria, we are opening the door to more ambitious projects, particularly those advancing higher-value circular economy “R” strategies including “as-is reuse”, repair, remanufacturing, circular design and industrial symbiosis.
“The increased funding available in 2026 provides an important opportunity for organisations to move from promising ideas to practical demonstration and implementation, generating evidence and learning that can support wider adoption of circular solutions across Ireland.”
The 2026 CEIGS will support projects focused on priority areas for Ireland’s circular economy, including:
Plastics: Redesigning products or packaging to reduce reliance on virgin or non-recyclable plastics and increase the use of recyclable alternatives.
Construction and demolition: Developing reusable construction products and approaches that enable greater reuse and material recovery through selective demolition.
Food waste: Implementing technical or behavioural interventions to prevent and reduce food waste in production and commercial settings.
Resources and raw materials: Improving the recovery and reuse of critical raw materials and reducing the use of hazardous substances in products.
The scheme is intended to support projects that can demonstrate tangible environmental, economic and social benefits and contribute to the wider development of a more circular Irish economy.
Minister Dillon added:
“The Circular Economy Strategy 2026–2028 provides the framework for accelerating Ireland’s transition to a more circular economy. But strategies only deliver when they are translated into action. This €1.5 million investment will help do exactly that – backing organisations with the ambition and ideas to change how we design, make, use, reuse and recover products and materials.
“I encourage businesses, social enterprises and community and voluntary organisations with innovative circular economy projects to take advantage of this opportunity and bring forward proposals that can make a real difference.”
Full details on the application process for the Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme are available through CIRCULÉIRE.
Applications will remain open until 12 October 2026 at 23:59 Irish time.
An online information session will take place on 21 September 2026. Interested applicants can register through the CEIGS information session registration page.
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