Design and trial smart energy systems: apply for funding

Innovate UK has launched a new competition, offering organisations funding to organise world-leading practical demonstrations of smart energy systems or to design new models.

There is up to £41.5M available to companies which can design and give practical demonstrations of new business models that intelligently link supply, storage and demand in heating, power and transport.

There are two parts to this competition; up to £40M is available for three smart energy system demonstrators, while up to £1.5M is available for studies into new, smarter approaches to local energy.

The funding is part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund programme, prospering from the energy revolution.

Demand to meet carbon reduction targets and the emergence of new technologies including artificial intelligence, internet of things and sensing and machine learning are creating new opportunities for smart energy systems.

This competition will help businesses to develop local energy approaches at scale that will create better outcomes for consumers and promote economic growth for the UK. By the early 2020s, it aims to prove that smarter local energy systems can deliver cleaner and cheaper energy services.

Successful projects will be supported by an energy integration network including the Energy Systems Catapult leading researchers and government and independent regulatory bodies.

Find out more about the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.

Demonstrator projects

Demonstration projects must be based in a large UK location such as a medium-sized town. They should:

• optimise energy across a range of supplies, infrastructure and demands
• deliver lower costs, lower emissions and economic benefit
• intelligently link energy supply and demand
• develop processes and skills for designing, financing, building and operating smart local energy systems
• encourage private investment to replicate these impacts across the UK

Competition information

• The competition is open, and the deadline for applications is at midday on 25 July 2018.
• projects can be led by a business, university, public sector organisation or a research and technology organisation working with others. They must include at least one SME, one academic organisation and a local authority or equivalent organisation
• you must carry out at least 90% of your project work in the UK and exploit the results here
• grant funding for each project is expected to be £13M or higher, with total project costs between £26M and £160M.
• business could attract up to 45% of their project costs
• a briefing event will be held on 15 May 2018

Find out more about the competition for demonstrators and apply.

Concepts and design

Studies into new smart, energy systems should show how they could improve future energy services in a UK location at least the size of a medium-sized town.

They should show how implementation by the early 2020s could:

• reduce energy bills by at least 25% and reduce carbon emissions in line with targets
• produce high-value local jobs and local and export business opportunities
• improve energy security and make the UK more resilient to environmental, technological, social and economic change
• improve energy efficiency and infrastructure productivity
• meet air quality targets
• create ways to test and scale new technologies and business, consumer and regulatory models to speed up industry growth
• The best projects will be invited to develop their ideas further in a future competition.

Competition information

• the competition is open, and the deadline for applications is at midday on 25 July 2018
• projects can be led by a business, academic organisation, charity, public sector organisation or local authority, research council institute or a research and technology organisation. At least one SME must be included
• you must carry out at least 90% of your project work in the UK and exploit the results here
• total project costs to be between £100,000 and £200,000 and for projects to last up to six months
• businesses could attract up to 70% of their project costs
• a briefing event will be held on 15th May 2018

Find out more about this competition for smart energy system studies and apply.