The UK government and the non-departmental public body Innovate UK are partnering to put up about £15 million ($24 million) for the country’s latest low-emissions vehicles competition.
Of that £15 million, £11 million ($18 million) will be provided by the UK’s Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV), with the other £4 million ($6 million) provided by Innovate UK.
The competition is intended to spur the development of vehicle technologies capable of significantly lowering carbon dioxide emissions. In order for a proposal to be considered (as per competition guidelines), it must have at its core at least one of the following Automotive Council strategic technologies:
• Electric machines and power electronics
• Energy storage and energy management
• Lightweight vehicle and powertrain structures
• Internal combustion engines and energy efficiency
Potential proposals can of course feature any number of other “highly disruptive technologies” — it’s just that they must also contain at least one of the above.
As per other competition guidelines — proposal technologies can be initially developed for nearly any purpose, or type of transportation, in order to be eligible. All that is needed is a demonstration that it has a clear path of exploitation with regard to road-going vehicles.
A final note: proposals are required to be collaborative and business-led. Companies should be able to raise the funding needed to cover up to 50% of their project costs. Expectations, as far as project size go, are for total costs to range between £500,000 and £2 million ($804,000 to $3 million).
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