Income TNO by funding source

data publication

Science in Figures

08 June 2023

Funding income tno

In this data publication we show the development of the revenues of the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) by funding source.

In short

Revenue TNO 572 million euros in 2021
Biggest funding source central government with almost 50% direct orders
Other funding sources consist of private organizations and business enterprises (29%), and from abroad (18%)

Export Table Data

	Other income	International contract work	Private contract work abroad	Private contract work Netherlands	Public contract work Netherlands	National government direct support
2004	10	23,2	95	155,9	87,3	194,5
2005	4,8	23,7	98,1	157,5	86,7	195,8
2006	9,1	25	96,9	159,3	92,6	195,8
2007	14	24,1	101,7	161	95,8	196,4
2008	12,2	26,8	113,1	170,2	94,9	194,7
2009	10,5	18,7	111,4	141,3	102	202,9
2010	17,3	25,7	101,7	144,2	97,4	194,8
2011	21,9	37,7	108,4	147,6	94,4	188,9
2012	19	43,1	110,4	141,6	99,7	192,3
2013	14,9	44,9	111,6	135,9	91,2	180,5
2014	14,2	37,3	114,1	116,9	86,9	171,2
2015	16,3	35,9	125,9	102,7	85,8	167,9
2016	14,7	35,2	123,4	107,4	88,3	176,3
2017	16	28,2	91,2	87,4	78,2	176,5
2018	21,9	24,9	69,3	83,1	89,3	216,3
2019	19,2	27	71,5	91,6	102	242,6
2020	12,5	26,7	54,9	88,4	112,2	258,8
2021	12,6	31,2	65,9	85,8	108,2	268,7

Data: Download as CSV file

Source: TNO annual accounts (consolidated annual account)

Notes: The name of the institutional contributions of the government has changed several times (basic funding and targeted funding; knowledge as power, policy and application-oriented knowledge investment, program funding). After 2016, two trend breaches are visible. At the end of 2016, TNO sold the majority of its shares in TNO Bedrijven B.V. to a private investment company. As of March 30, 2017, TNO Bedrijven b.v. continued as First Dutch Innovations, in which TNO is a minority shareholder. As a consequence of this deconsolidation, the income in 2017 was lowered by approximately € 62 million. In 2018, ECN merged with TNO and continued as ECN part of TNO.

Central government is largest funder
Between 2004 and 2008 TNO income grew mainly through commissions. Between 2009 and 2012 income fluctuates slightly. After 2012 almost all funding sources decline except for 'commissions from abroad'. In 2016 the decline seems to have stopped. After that, comparisons are difficult (see below under 'Changing trends due to sale and merger'). However, research by the Rathenau Institute into the funding of public knowledge organisations shows that the income of the TO2 institutions, which includes TNO, has been rising again since 2018.

It is clear that the central government is TNO's largest source of funding. In the period between 2004 and 2016, about 30% of the income comes directly from the government. Then it rises to 40% in 2019, but this increase is due to the changes at TNO (see below under 'Trend change due to sale and merger'). Other major sources of income in 2019 are private parties (29%) and foreign countries (18%). Other countries include, for example, orders from international companies and grants from European Framework Programmes.

Income TNO by funding source

In short

Break in trend due to sale and merger

Definitions and abbreviations

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