Funding of up to £7 million for organisations to improve clean energy access in Official Development Assistance (ODA) eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Indo-Pacific region and Latin America.
This competition opens on 5 January 2026 and closes at 11am on 25 March 2026.
Who it is for
This competition is open to collaborations only.
There are two types of leads in the Energy Catalyst programme, an administrative lead, who will complete the application, and a technology lead.
The administrative lead must be a UK-registered business, and must be or involve an SME.
The technology lead
- can be a business of any size
- can be an RTO or academic institution
- can be from anywhere in the world
- must claim grant funding through this competition
Your project must
- have total costs between £50,000 and £1.5 million
- last between 6 and 24 months
- start from 1 August 2026
- end by 31 March 2030
- help deliver clean energy access in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Indo-Pacific region and Latin America
- involve at least one partner with a legal entity in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia or the Indo-Pacific region, or Latin America, this can include in-country offices
- include a UK-registered administrative lead
- partner with a UK administrative lead if you are an international organisation
- involve at least one micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME), from anywhere in the world
- involve testing or demonstration work in an eligible ODA country for this competition
- involve at least one legally separate collaborator
Support you can get
This competition aims to accelerate the innovations needed to create new or improved clean energy access in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Indo-Pacific region and Latin America. This is to create a just and inclusive energy transition and extend the benefits of clean energy for all to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 7 and 13.
This competition is split into three strands
- energy catalyst round 11 early-stage / feasibility studies
- energy catalyst round 11 mid-stage / industrial research (this strand)
- energy catalyst round 11 late-stage / experimental development
For industrial research projects you could get funding for your eligible project costs of
- up to 70% if you are a micro or small organisation
- up to 60% if you are a medium-sized organisation
- up to 50% if you are a large organisation
Support organisers
- Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)
- Innovate UK
Contact
Innovate UK
Phone
0300 321 4357
Next Steps
on the Innovation Funding Service website
Published
12 January 2026
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