OceanEye initiative announced during European Ocean Days
2 March 2026
On 2 March, European Commission President announced the OceanEye initiative with an EU contribution of €50 million from Horizon Europe to the International Alliance for 2026-2027. The initiative will address monitoring gaps and reinforce Europe’s leadership in marine data and digital innovation, including the Digital Twin of the Ocean.
Building on the European Digital Twin of the Ocean (EDITO) and Copernicus' marine programme, OceanEye aims to lay the foundation for Europe's sovereign and cutting-edge ocean observation technology infrastructure supporting international efforts in ocean observation and protection.
OceanEye
Ocean observation is key in collecting data needed to understand the state of the ocean, predict and mitigate the impacts of climate change, enhance the competitiveness of our economic activities at sea, and contribute to our maritime security. OceanEye, being an essential element of the European Ocean Pact, will support EU ocean technology and innovation, and will position the EU at the forefront of international efforts to deliver a sustained Global Ocean Observing System.
International Alliance
The announced Alliance will unite EU Member States and international partners through commitments to secure funding and provide a framework for coordinated action and cooperation. It will ensure secure access to open and free ocean data for both the EU and international partners. It will support the Global Ocean Observing System capacities, in partnership with UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission.
Next steps
OceanEye will be adopted by the Commission later in 2026 to take into account the feedback received following the call for evidence on the EU ocean observation initiative (Read EuroGOOS and EOOS responses to the call). A pledging event to gather contributions for the International Alliance will be organised in September. The Commission set the objective of having a fully operational European Ocean Observation System by 2030.
Read more about the official announcement here.