Italy’s Ministry of Environment and Energy Security (MASE), in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Cool Coalition, has opened the first EPIC Deploy Call for Proposals. Grants will support sustainable, energy-efficient and climate-resilient cooling projects in Brazil, Morocco, Tunisia, Kenya and Ethiopia. Applications close on 31 October 2026.
The call covers two priority areas: sustainable cooling in the tertiary sector, including hospitals, universities, schools and other public facilities; and sustainable cooling in industry and the cold chain, including agri-food value chains, logistics platforms and industrial refrigeration. Pilot projects are expected to use mature, near-commercial technologies alongside sustainable financing models and public-private partnerships.
Grants range from USD 200,000 to USD 1 million per project, with applicants required to secure at least 20% co-financing. Eligible applicants are international consortia of public, private and/or research entities, with at least one partner based in one of the five target countries.
EPIC Deploy forms part of the EPIC (Enabling Pledge Implementation for Cooling) Facility, established by UNEP’s Cool Coalition to support implementation of the Global Cooling Pledge. According to the source, more than 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to adequate cooling services, while UNEP’s Global Cooling Watch 2025 states that cooling demand could nearly triple by 2050 if current trends continue.
BASE provides technical and grant-management support to UNEP throughout the funding cycle. It designed and manages the Call for Proposals, including the application framework, eligibility rules and budget templates, and will lead proposal evaluation and due diligence before monitoring selected projects during implementation.
Full eligibility criteria, application documents and guidance are available on the EPIC Deploy website at https://epic-deploy.energy-base.org/.
