£38 million to be invested to cut vehicle emissions
£38 million will be invested in over 130 car manufacturers, technology companies and research centres across the country through the OLEV Research and Development fund. The funding will aid winners to develop ideas that can cut vehicle emissions and develop plug-in cars.
The competition, which was launched during September 2015, received applications from companies who were looking for support to develop their low emissions ideas. The funding comes in the form of £30 million from the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV), with an additional £8.2 million worth of funding from Innovate UK who will support the scheme. The funding will help create hi-tech jobs, which will further help Britain to become a global leader in developing state of the art, emission-cutting technology.
Working prototypes created by the projects will begin to be unveiled by 2018. Some of the projects may then be eligible to enter an APC grant funding competition that can help take working prototypes into volume production.
Transport Minister, Andrew Jones said:
Our £38 million investment will help Britain become a world leader in this exciting and valuable technology sector, creating skilled jobs of the future as part of our long-term economic plan. It will also mean lower running costs for motorists and less fuel consumption, which is good for the environment and our economy. This competition continues our £600 million commitment by 2020 to support the uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles, making journeys cheaper and greener, ensuring the nation is fit for the future.
Roland Meister, Head of Transport at Innovate UK said:
UK businesses have a great opportunity to be at the leading edge of the global drive to increase efficiency and reduce emissions from our vehicles. This £38 million of government support means that more than 130 innovative organisations right across the country now have the chance to get their ideas off the drawing board and potentially into the cars and trucks of the future, boosting the economy by at least £532 million in the process.
The OLEV research and development fund will award funding to over 130 companies and research organisations across the UK including:
West Midlands
£7.6 million for 36 organisations across the region, including £1.7 million for a consortium led by Jaguar Land Rover and Nissan to develop ways of manufacturing composite materials making vehicles lighter and more fuel efficient. International manufacturers currently pay a premium for light-weight materials – such as carbon fibre found in F1 cars – and this investment will support the mass production of an emerging technology that can boost British-made exports across the globe.
Yorkshire and the Humber
£4.4 million across 12 organisations. Sheffield-based Faradion Ltd lead a consortium receiving £1.3 million to significantly reduce the cost of electric vehicle batteries by using cheaper sodium-ion technology, while a collaboration between Magnomatics Ltd and the University of Sheffield will develop a more efficient transmission system using magnets.
South-east
£5.6 million across 20 organisations. Ceres Power Ltd in Horsham lead a team receiving £770,000 to test new fuel cells extending the range of electric vans.
East Midlands
£7.5 million across 23 organisations. One consortia led by Far-UK in Nottingham is awarded £1.4 million to explore how to replace steel bodies with lighter materials while maintaining the highest safety standards.
Scotland
£2.5 million across 7 organisations. Sunamp Ltd near Edinburgh lead a team to transform chilled or frozen food fleets using ‘thermal store’ technology to minimise battery power used up to keep food deliveries fresh.
North-west
£1.7 million across 7 organisations. A team including Clean Air Power Ltd in Lancashire will seek to apply greener dual-fuel technology to HGVs, cutting emissions on freight deliveries.
East of England
£2.9 million across 15 organisations. Controlled Power Technologies Ltd in Essex leads a consortium of 4 winning £1.8 million to develop a low-cost hybrid system suitable for capturing braking energy and providing an extra boost to smaller city cars.
Greater London
£2.2 million across 11 organisations. Advanced Design Technology Ltd will lead a project team to develop thermal recovery kits that capture waste heat from the exhaust and turn it into electricity.
South-west
£3.1 million across 16 organisations. HiETA Technologies get £1.7 million to lead a project developing new lighter vehicle components made from advanced aluminium alloys.
North-east
£570,000 across 5 organisations including the light weighting collaboration with Jaguar Land Rover.