Energy Catalyst Briefing: Launch and Brokerage Events

About the programme

Organisations can apply for funding to create new or improved clean energy access in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia or the Indo-Pacific regions.

Energy Catalyst, an Innovate UK programme, helps early- to late-stage innovators develop market-based technologies and business models that accelerate access to clean, accessible, and affordable energy in Africa, Asia and the Indo Pacific regions.

The Energy Catalyst programme is one of the UK’s biggest energy access focused grant funding initiatives. Funding is provided through the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), as part of the Transforming Energy Access (TEA) Platform, and the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). Both contributions are from the UK’s Ayrton Fund, part of the UK’s International Climate Finance commitment.

The overall aim of Energy Catalyst is to create a just and inclusive energy transition and extend the benefits of clean energy to all, with the aim of meeting Sustainable Development Goals 7 (Affordable and clean energy) and 13 (Climate action).

About the events

Innovate UK and Innovate UK KTN hosted two events focusing on the Energy Catalyst programme: a hybrid event on Tuesday 21st February in London (recording available above) and a physical event on Tuesday 28th February in Edinburgh. Both events incorporated networking and brokerage activity to facilitate consortium-building.

Eligibility

Energy Catalyst offers three forms of funding. These are referred to as strands and run in parallel. Which strand an applicant applies for depends on the stage of development of the project:

• Early stage for feasibility studies
• Mid-stage for industrial research
• Late stage for experimental development

To be eligible for funding for mid and late stages, at least some of the research and development, testing or demonstration activities must be carried out in Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and Indo-Pacific regions. This can be done by either a UK or international partner.

More information is available on the Energy Catalyst website or on KTN’s funding pages. Energy Catalyst Round 10 closes on 28th June 2023.

Requirements

Proposals must also address each of the following dimensions of energy access:

• Improving energy access in Official Development Assistance (ODA) eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and Indo-Pacific regions
• Having a technology or business model which is affordable, reliable and low carbon
• The impact on gender equality and social inclusion (GESI)

To be eligible for funding you must be a UK or international:

• Business of any size
• Research technology organisation (RTO)
• Academic organisation
• Public sector organisation
• Non-governmental organisations (NGOs)

Online Partnering: Innovate UK EDGE is providing an online brokerage platform, b2match, to support potential applicants in finding partners for Energy Catalyst funding rounds. This is available to both UK and International organisations. B2match allows you to search for, message and meet online with potential partners to form a consortium to apply for funding.