Zero Emission Generators (ZE-Gen) Accelerator Phase 1: Discover (UK)

The ZE-Gen technology accelerator programme aims to accelerate the innovations needed to effectively replace fossil fuel generators with renewable alternatives.

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, will work with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to invest up to £2 million in innovation projects in Nigeria and the Philippines.

This competition is a technology accelerator which is a part of the Zero Emission Generators (ZE-Gen) programme.

The aim of this competition is to support feasibility projects developing a range of technology and business models focussed on Nigeria or the Philippines.

Your proposal must:

• focus on forming an integrated technology which directly replaces one or more fossil fuel generators
• focus on a technology which is safe, flexible and appropriate to multiple applications
• focus on a technology which is affordable, reliable and low carbon
• focus on commercial, domestic, public sector or humanitarian use cases where fossil fuel generators are the only source of electricity or used as back up for an unreliable grid
• focus on an innovation which utilises AC or DC renewable generation technologies to charge or charge from the grid as a backup source of energy
• focus on a technology which is capable of storing energy
• focus on a technology which is scalable
• focus on utilising local supply chains where possible

Project Size

• Your project’s total costs must be between £50,000 and £150,000.

Projects they will not fund

• They are not funding projects that:
  • will not contribute significantly to energy affordability, security and reduced carbon emissions
  • do not address clean energy requirements
  • are not Official Development Assistance (ODA) compliant
  • do not take into account and plan to manage Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) issues
  • are projects where energy innovation is not the primary focus (if more than 50% project is focussed on other innovations)
  • aim to improve fossil fuel generators
  • use combustion technologies
  • are inflexible and tailored to a specific use
  • do not propose an end of life circularity plan for the renewable alternatives developed with this funding
  • are large scale infrastructure projects, including industrial processes and utility scale solutions
• They cannot fund projects that are:
  • dependent on export performance, for example giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it exports a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it uses 50% UK flour in their product

Who can apply?

• Your project
  • Your project must:
    • last for 10 months only
    • start on 1 June 2024
    • end on 31 March 2025
    • ensure Nigeria or the Philippines is the primary beneficiary of the innovation
    • be compliant with ODA funding
    • 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
• Lead organisation
  • There are two types of leads in the ZE-Gen Accelerator programme, these are:
    • an administrative lead
    • a technology lead
  • UK registered organisations can be both the administrative and technology lead if the criteria is met for both types of leads. Only UK registered businesses can work alone.
  • The administrative lead must:
    • complete the application
    • be a UK registered organisation
    • claim grant funding through this competition
  • The administrative lead organisation cannot be an academic institution.
  • A technology lead will be responsible for the development of the scope, work packages and any other technical work.
• Project team
  • To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be one of the following UK registered:
    • business of any size
    • academic institution
    • charity
    • not for profit
    • public sector organisation
    • research and technology organisation (RTO)
  • Each partner organisation must be invited into the Innovation Funding Service by the lead to collaborate on a project.
• International Partners
  • They strongly encourage the inclusion of international partners (business or other), where relevant to the project.
• Non-funded partners
  • Your project can include partners that do not receive any of this competition’s funding. Their costs will count towards the total project costs.
• Subcontractors
  • Subcontractors are allowed in this competition.
  • Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the world and you must select them through your usual procurement process.
  • All subcontractor costs must be justified and appropriate to the total project costs.

For more information, visit Innovate UK.