Description

This competition is part of Energy Catalyst Round 11, delivered by Innovate UK (part of UKRI) and funded through the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) as part of the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF) and the Ayrton Fund. It supports innovative projects that create new or improved clean energy access for populations in official development assistance (ODA)-eligible countries — specifically covering regions in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Indo-Pacific and Latin America.

Funding amount

• Total funding available: Up to £7 million across all projects submitted to the three strands (early, mid and late) of Energy Catalyst Round 11.
• Per project:
  • Eligible total project costs must be between £50,000 and £300,000 for this early stage strand.
  • Funding is delivered as a grant with support levels dependent on organisation size and type, following Innovate UK’s research categories (e.g., feasibility projects may attract up to ~70 % of eligible costs for micro/small organisations).

Submission Deadlines

• Competition opens: 5 January 2026.
• Competition closes: 25 March 2026 at 11:00 am UK time.
• Applicant notifications: around 18 May 2026.
• Earliest project start: 1 August 2026 (projects must start on the first of a month).
• Latest project end: 31 March 2030 (projects must finish within approved period).

Submission conditions

Applicants must:

• submit applications through the Innovation Funding Service by the deadline.
• ensure all consortium partners have been invited and accepted on the platform before submission.
• not start any project activity before receiving a Grant Offer Letter.
• meet all requirements of ODA compliance, including demonstrating that the project benefits one or more ODA eligible countries and includes appropriate social and economic impact framing.
• comply with Innovate UK eligibility, costing, subsidy control and financial viability checks.

Eligible types of organisations

This competition supports collaborative projects. Eligible participants include:

• UK registered organisations of any size (businesses, charities, NGOs, research organisations).
• Partners from any country may participate and contribute to project delivery, with the UK organisation acting as the administrative lead and claiming grant.
• Every application must include at least one micro, small or medium sized enterprise (SME) claiming grant funding.
• Project teams may include academic institutions, research & technology organisations (RTOs), NGOs and other non-funded partners.

Eligible countries

• Project work must be delivered in the UK (for the UK lead) and results exploited from the UK.
• Benefits must accrue to ODA eligible countries (e.g., sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Indo-Pacific and Latin America).
• Partners can be based anywhere, but ODA compliance and UK leadership is required for funding.