Funding competition Ofgem Round 4: Call for Ideas

This Call for Ideas is delivered in partnership with Ofgem. Future funding may be available from the Ofgem Strategic Innovation Fund. The fund aims to deliver net zero at lowest cost to consumers and support innovative businesses to grow and scale.

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Competition sections

Description

This Call for Ideas forms part of a programme delivered with the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) in partnership with Innovate UK. This alignment enhances the programme’s ability to contribute to Government’s net zero objectives, while allowing it to remain dynamic, flexible and joined up with Government, industry and consumers.

Ideas submitted to Innovate UK and shared to the Energy Networks, may advance through to develop a project proposal led by an Energy Network. This proposal may be offered the opportunity to seek funding from the Ofgem Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF).

The Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) fund aims to deliver net zero at the lowest cost to consumers and support innovative businesses to grow and scale.

The Ofgem Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) programme is investing up to £450 million in network innovation over the next five years. SIF responds to industry obstacles and represents a major investment in the pace of innovation in the sector. SIF is funded by energy consumers as part of the RIIO-2 price control.

The vision of the SIF is to:

  • accelerate the UK’s transition to net zero, at lowest cost to consumer
  • make the UK the best place for energy business to grow and scale

This is a four-stage process for innovation to grow and resolve challenges facing the sector:

  1. Challenge Setting
  2. Ideation
  3. Incubation
  4. Acceleration

The ideation phase focuses on enabling the most ambitious and targeted ideas to reach the networks and be pitched as potential solutions for meeting the innovation challenges.

These ideas must align with the innovation challenges which have been developed with industry and key stakeholders through the challenge setting process.

The Challenges for this round are:

  • Challenge 1: Faster network development
  • Challenge 2: Greater heat flexibility
  • Challenge 3: Embedding resilience
  • Challenge 4: Accelerating towards net zero energy networks

This Call for Ideas is to identify potential solutions to these challenges which may develop into projects funded by the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) Round 4. Innovators have the opportunity to submit project ideas which are reviewed in a quick, easy and transparent manner.

As part of the review process, you may be invited to pitch your idea to the Energy Networks. Following pitching, the Energy Networks will choose relevant ideas to further development and innovators to potentially partner with on a SIF application.

The subsequent SIF programme funding opportunities are delivered over different phases:

  1. Discovery Phase: projects must last up to three months and have a total requested funding of no more than £150,000, exclusive of VAT.
  2. Alpha Phase: projects must last up to six months and have a total requested funding of no more than £500,000, exclusive of VAT.
  3. Beta Phase: projects must last up to five years and have a total requested funding of no more than £10 million, exclusive of VAT. Total costs and funding requests of more than this may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

In applying to this Call for Ideas competition, you are entering into a competitive process.

Any adoption and implementation of a solution from these funding opportunities would be subject to a separate, possibly competitive, procurement exercise.

Your submitted proposals for this Call for Ideas, will be sent for consideration at 11am UK time on the deadline stated in this Innovate UK competition brief. We cannot guarantee other government or third party sites will always show the correct competition information.

Funding type

Thirdparty

Project size

There is no funding available for this Call for Ideas.

Accessibility and Inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us at least 15 working days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Who can apply

Your submitted proposal must:

  • intend to carry out its project work in Great Britain (England, Scotland or Wales)
  • intend to exploit the results from or in Great Britain
  • outline network customer benefits
  • include a unique selling proposition
  • detail the Networks you wish to be involved with
  • highlight which Round 4 challenge and theme your idea addresses

There is no funding offered at this Call for Ideas phase.

The future funded opportunities for SIF Round 4 have different phases:

  1. Discovery Phase: projects must last up to three months and have a total requested funding of no more than £150,000, exclusive of VAT.
  2. Alpha Phase: projects must last up to six months and have a total requested funding of no more than £500,000, exclusive of VAT.
  3. Beta Phase: projects must last up to five years and have a total requested funding of no more than £10 million, exclusive of VAT, total costs and funding requests of more than this may be considered on a case by case basis.

A minimum of 10% compulsory contribution is also expected at each stage.

Due to current Government trade restrictions, any commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any Russian or Belarusian entity as partner or subcontractor must be scrutinised in detail by Ofgem ahead of their funding decisions. This includes any goods or services originating from a Russian or Belarusian source.

Any applications that are viewed as involving Russian or Belarusian entities, goods or services, which includes parent companies, may be at risk of funding approval and additional delays. Where potential concerns are identified the lead Energy Network applicants will need to work with the relevant Government bodies to ensure the ongoing protection of critical national infrastructure.

This Call for Ideas is open to sole innovators and to organisations of all types and sizes. This includes UK registered businesses of any size, research organisations, and research and technology organisations.

To secure future funding from SIF, you will be required to partner with an Energy Network who will lead an application into one of the SIF challenge competitions.

Use of animals in research and innovation

Innovate UK expects and supports the provision and safeguarding of welfare standards for animals used in research and innovation, according to best practice and up to date guidance.

Applicants must ensure that all of the proposed work within projects, both that in the UK and internationally, will comply with the UKRI guidance on the use of animals in research and innovation.

Any projects selected for funding which involve animals will be asked to provide additional information on welfare and ethical considerations, as well as compliance with any relevant legislation as part of the project start-up process. This information will be reviewed before an award is made.

Previous applications

You can submit proposals which have been submitted into previous rounds of the SIF funding opportunities where you can show it meets the challenges for Round 4.

To avoid duplication, you must not submit proposals which have already been shared directly with the Energy Networks, through the Energy Network Association’s (ENA) Smarter Networks portal.

No subsidy (and non-aid where applicable)

Ofgem SIF funding is not subject to subsidy control.

Funding

A total of up to £450 million exclusive of VAT is allocated to the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) until 2026.

This opportunity is a Call for Ideas and does not guarantee a proposal will be taken forward. There is no funding available for this Call for Ideas.

The total funding available for the funded phases of the SIF competitions can change. Ofgem has the right to:

  • adjust the provisional funding allocations between the phases
  • apply a ‘portfolio’ approach based on technology, geography, innovation, markets, and participants

The Energy Networks reserve the right to make the final decisions as to which proposals are taken forward to apply for funding in the SIF competitions.

For the funded phases of the SIF competitions, Ofgem reserve the right to make the final decision as to which projects are funded.

Your proposal

The Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) aims to deliver net zero at lowest cost to consumers and support innovative businesses to grow and scale.

This includes decarbonising gas and electric energy distribution, transmission networks and benefit to the consumer. Your SIF project must help shape the future of the gas and electricity networks and succeed commercially where possible.

SIF funded projects must aim to reduce costs for consumers and carbon emissions, while improving access to revenues and markets. This will also incentivise the creation of new products, processes and services, linking into the themes for each challenge.

The Challenges for SIF Round 4 are:

  • Challenge 1: Faster network development
  • Challenge 2: Greater heat flexibility
  • Challenge 3: Embedding resilience
  • Challenge 4: Accelerating towards net zero energy networks

This Call for Ideas is open to proposals for any social, regulatory, market, legal or technical innovation that aligns with the challenges and related themes identified and is within the remit of the Energy Networks. Your proposal can be related to a product, process or service.

Portfolio approach

The Energy Networks will decide which proposals they want to take forward for pitching and then again post pitching for further engagement. They may take a portfolio approach to explore a variety of projects across different technologies, markets, technological maturities and research categories, which will inform future partnerships.

Specific themes

Within each challenge there are specific themes. Your proposal must meet one of these themes for your selected challenge.

Challenge 1 themes:

  • novel methods to increase capacity from existing assets or support faster and efficient connection methods including using digital innovations
  • regional balancing approaches to accelerate low carbon technology deployment

Challenge 2 themes:

  • flexibility solutions to reduce peak demand from heat decarbonisation

Challenge 3 themes:

  • cross vector approaches to decarbonise rural communities in a resilient manner
  • transition planning for an energy system with reducing natural gas demand

Challenge 4 themes:

  • innovation to improve efficiency of network operations

Projects we will not fund

This programme will not fund projects that do not meet the Eligibility Criteria outlined in the SIF Governance document.

1 May 2024
Competition opens
5 June 2024 11:00am
Competition closes

Before you start

You must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before you start.

Before submitting, it is the lead applicant’s responsibility to make sure:

  • that all the information provided in the application is correct
  • your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria
  • all sections of the application are marked as complete

You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

What we ask you

The application is split into two sections:

  1. Project details.
  2. Application questions.

Accessibility and Inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us at least 15 working days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Pitching

An initial review of your proposal will be undertaken by an Innovate UK panel to ensure the proposal is eligible within the scope of the SIF Round 4 Challenges. and the eligibility criteria in the SIF Governance Document.

To progress your application, your full proposal will be shared with the Energy Networks that you specify in your application. You must ensure you carefully select which Energy Networks you would like your full proposal to be shared with in the Partner Aspirations, Energy Network Question.

We are only able to share your proposal with those Energy Networks that you select. If your proposal is shared with the Energy Networks you select, your full proposal will be held in accordance with their privacy and data sharing policies, which are linked in the Partner Aspirations, Energy Network Question.

The Energy Networks will then review your proposal and determine if they wish to hear more about it through an online pitching session, where you will be expected to provide a short presentation about your idea.

Invitation to Pitch

If the Energy Networks express an interest in your proposal, an invitation to pitch will be sent from Innovate UK by email. The email will include the date and time of your pitch, instructions on how to join the session and some basic guidance on how to prepare.

Being invited to a pitch and taking part in pitching does not guarantee funding or a decision for taking the proposal forward.

Further guidance relating to presentation format and attendees will be provided in the invitation email.

Pitch

After your presentation, the panel will spend a short time asking questions. You will be expected to answer questions based on the information you provided in your proposal and presentation.

After your Pitch

The Energy Network panellists will review your proposal and pitch internally.

We will notify you by email whether you have been successful or not in securing a formal introduction to the Energy Networks you pitched to. Where possible you will receive feedback.

Due to the volume of proposals and pitches, the Energy Networks may wait until closer to the date of future SIF funding competition windows to decide which proposals they wish to take forward. As a reminder there is no funding available for this Call for Ideas.

1. Project details

This section provides background for your application and is not scored.

Application team

You can decide which people from your organisation will work with you on your proposal, if applicable, and invite those people to help complete the application form.

Application details

Give your proposal’s title.

You must add a start date of 1 September 2024 and a duration of three months in order to complete this section. This does not affect the review of your idea.

Summary of your idea

Describe your idea briefly and be clear about what makes it innovative in the context of energy network innovation.

Your answer can be up to 200 words long.

2. Application questions

An initial review of your proposal will be undertaken by an Innovate UK panel to ensure the proposal is within the scope of SIF and the Round 4 Challenges.

You must answer all questions. Your answer to each question can be up to 200 words long. Do not include any website addresses (URLs) in your answers.

Your answers to the following questions will form your proposal. If you pass the initial review process conducted by Innovate UK, your proposal will be sent to the Energy Networks you select. You must select Energy Networks in the Partner Aspirations, Energy Network Question.

You must be considerate of any commercially sensitive or confidential material when completing your application.

Question 1. Animal testing (not assessed as part of your proposal)

Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing?

You must select one option:

  • Yes
  • No

We will only support innovation projects conducted to the highest standards of animal welfare.

Further information for proposals involving animal testing is available at the UKRI Good Research Hub and NC3R’s animal welfare guidance.

Question 2. Background to your organisation

Provide a brief history of your organisation, including how long it has been operating.

This is used to understand why you are uniquely qualified to pursue this idea.

Question 3. Previous engagement with the Strategic Innovation Fund

Has your organisation previously applied to the Strategic Innovation Fund?

  • Yes
  • No

Question 4. Previous funding from the Strategic Innovation Fund

Has your organisation previously received funding from the Strategic Innovation Fund?

  • Yes
  • No

Question 5. Challenge

Select from the list the challenge, your proposal most relates to:

  • Challenge 1: Faster network development
  • Challenge 2: Greater heat flexibility
  • Challenge 3: Embedding resilience
  • Challenge 4: Accelerating towards net zero energy networks

Question 6. Challenge theme

Select from the list the single theme your proposal most relates to.

Challenge 1 themes:

  • Novel methods to increase capacity from existing assets or support faster and efficient connection methods including using digital innovations
  • Regional balancing approaches to accelerate low carbon technology deployment

Challenge 2 themes:

  • Flexibility solutions to reduce peak demand from heat decarbonisation

Challenge 3 themes:

  • Cross vector approaches to decarbonise rural communities in a resilient manner
  • Transition planning for an energy system with reducing natural gas demand

Challenge 4 themes:

  • Innovation to improve efficiency of network operations

For further information on the themes visit the SIF Round 4 Challenge document.

Question 7. Type of innovation

Select the type of innovation that best describes your proposal as a:

  • specific piece of new equipment, including monitoring, control and communications systems and software
  • specific piece of new technology, including analysis and modelling systems or software, in relation to which the Method is unproven
  • new methodology, including the identification of specific new procedures or techniques used to identify, select, process, and analyse information
  • specific novel arrangement or application of existing gas transportation, electricity transmission or electricity distribution equipment, technology or methodology
  • specific novel operational practice directly related to the operation of the gas transportation system, electricity transmission or electricity distribution in Great Britain (England, Scotland or Wales)
  • specific novel commercial arrangement

Question 8. Technology area

Select the area of technology that best describes your proposal:

  • Energy Generation
  • Electricity Transmission
  • Electricity Distribution
  • Electricity System Operation
  • Gas Transmission
  • Gas Distribution
  • Energy Markets
  • System Modelling
  • Digital Solutions or Software
  • Transport and mobility
  • Electric Heating
  • Hydrogen Production or Storage
  • Hydrogen Supply Chain

Question 9. Problem statement

What is the business need, technological challenge, or market opportunity behind your innovation?

Provide a description of the problem within the context of the theme you selected in response to the challenge theme question.

Question 10. Solution proposal

What is the proposed solution and where will the focus of the energy network innovation be?

Provide a brief description of the proposed solution, including relevant technical details and using your response to the type of innovation question above to frame your answer.

You can submit one appendix to support your answer. It can include diagrams and charts. It must be a PDF, up to 1 A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 11. Benefits of proposal

What are the key benefits that your proposed solution can bring to the Energy Networks or Energy Network customers?

Examples of Energy Network customers include, but are not limited to:

  • domestic or industrial users
  • generators
  • storage developers

Question 12. Scaled deployment of proposal

How will your proposed solution be deployed at scale and what key challenges do you see that exist in this deployment? You must reference how the partnership with the Energy Networks can support this deployment.

Question 13. Previous Energy Network engagement

Have you previously shared this proposal with any of the Energy Networks?

Select one:

  • Yes (provide further detail, including which Energy Networks)
  • No

To avoid duplication, proposals which have already been shared directly with an Energy Network will not be eligible for review and will not be invited to pitch to that Energy Network.

Question 14. Partner Aspirations, Energy Network

Select from the list the Energy Networks you would like your full proposal to be shared with for review as part of the application process. Your proposal will only be sent if it passes the initial review process conducted by Innovate UK.

If your proposal is shared with the Energy Networks you select, your full proposal will be held in accordance with their privacy and data sharing policies, each of which are provided below.

You must select all that apply and type their names as your response to this question:

If after submission of your application, you would like to change which Energy Networks your full proposal can be shared with, please contact the SIF mailbox (SIF_Ofgem@iuk.ukri.org) as soon as possible.

Question 15. Partnership Aspirations – Other

Please provide a brief description of your other partner aspirations, including if there are any other organisation(s) which you would like to be introduced to and why?

Question 16. Other Relevant Information

Please include any other information you think relevant for the Energy Networks to be aware of, for example relevant skills and experience.

Background and further information

Ofgem recognises that innovation will continue to play a crucial role in delivering best value to energy consumers. Innovation will prepare the regulated energy network companies to deliver net zero greenhouse gas emissions at lowest cost to consumers, while maintaining world-class levels of system reliability and customer service, and ensuring no consumer is left behind.

The Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) has been introduced under the regulated price control mechanism for the Electricity System Operator, Electricity Transmission, Gas Transmission, Gas Distribution and Electricity Distribution sectors. The SIF seeks to support energy network innovation that contributes to the achievement of Net Zero, while delivering real net benefits to network consumers and supporting innovative businesses to grow and scale. It is delivered in partnership with UKRI, who will work with other funders of innovation so that activities appropriately funded by network consumers are coordinated with activities delivered through other funding providers.

Strategic Innovation Fund competitions will continue to be developed in collaboration with input from the energy networks, innovators, Government, and wider industry. Competitions will focus on innovation for the most pressing challenges facing the sector. The requirements for energy networks and other organisations that wish to participate in the SIF are outlined in the SIF Governance Document.

Potential benefits to consumers as defined by Ofgem can be:

  • cost savings
  • delivering new products, processes, and services
  • improving products, processes, and services
  • enhancing their wellbeing
  • helping consumers access new or existing markets or revenue streams more easily, for example increasing the share of renewable generators contributing to energy markets, or providing granular information services on locational network capacity

This Call for Ideas forms part of the ideation and incubation phases of the SIF.

The Ideation phase focusses on generating new products and projects that will answer and target the innovation challenges. Part of ideation includes ideation workshops, held in conjunction with the Call for Ideas. These are intended to enable innovators and Energy Networks to gain sight of what the SIF can investigate, work up ideas and engage with other Energy Networks to input proposals to SIF for potential funding.

Incubation is the driver for the development of ideas and partnerships which can forge the ideas into powerful innovation projects, products and services. This drives the best and most relevant ideas from innovators to the networks for consideration and supports the development of impactful consortiums by match making in line with partnership requirements.

To secure future funding from SIF, you will be required to partner with an Energy Network who will lead an application into one of the SIF challenge competitions.

Data sharing

This opportunity is jointly operated by Innovate UK, on behalf of Ofgem, and in coordination with the Energy Networks listed below (each an “agency”):

Any relevant information submitted and produced during the application process concerning your application can be shared by one agency with the other, for its individual storage, processing and use.

This means that any information given to or generated by Innovate UK in respect of your application may be passed on to Ofgem and each agency, and vice versa. This would include, but is not restricted to:

  • the information stated on the application, including the personal details of all applicants
  • scoring and feedback on the application
  • information received during the management and administration of the grant, such as Monitoring Officer reports and Independent Accountant Reports

Innovate UK, Ofgem and each agency are directly accountable to you for their holding and processing of your information, including any personal data and confidential information. Data is held in accordance with their own policies. Accordingly, Innovate UK, Ofgem and each agency will be data controllers for personal data submitted during the application.

Innovate UK’s Privacy Policy

Ofgem Privacy Policy

Innovate UK complies with the requirements of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is committed to upholding data protection legislation, and protecting your information in accordance with data protection principles.

The Information Commissioner’s Office also has a useful guide for organisations, which outlines the data protection principles.

Briefing slides

Briefing slides will be available upon request from SIF_Ofgem@iuk.ukri.org.

Next steps

If you are successful in progressing to the next stage with an Energy Network, you may be required to enter into commercial contracts, including intellectual property (IP) arrangements. The default arrangements for IP are detailed in the SIF governance document.

Being invited to a pitching session or having an introduction to the Energy Networks does not guarantee future SIF funding.

Contact us

If you have any questions about the scope requirements of this competition, email SIF_Ofgem@iuk.ukri.org.

If you need more information about how to apply on the Innovation Funding Service (IFS) or you want to submit your application in Welsh, email support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357.

Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Innovate UK or any of our partners will not tolerate abusive language in any written or verbal correspondence, applications, social media or any other form that might affect staff.

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