20 winning projects to help UK reach net zero

More than 20 innovative projects to help the UK reach net zero, by reducing carbon emissions in the transport, energy and industrial sectors, are to share nearly £6 million in UK Research and Innovation funding.

The projects, involving innovative start-ups, universities and some of Britain’s biggest companies, will receive funding from the Driving the Electric Revolution challenge.

The money will help grow the UK’s Power Electronics, Machines and Drives (PEMD) supply chain and increase manufacturing capability to allow future improvements in productivity, quality, capacity or efficiency.

This investment into the PEMD supply chain is vital to making sure that the UK reaches net zero, as some or all these technologies can be found in every electrical item, including electric vehicles. As they are such a crucial technology across sectors from transport to energy to agriculture, net zero is not possible without PEMD.

Spread across the UK from Wales to Scotland and the South West to the North East of England, these projects will last up to nine months and include a project to create rare earth magnets from scrapped loudspeakers; developing electric hub motors for farm vehicles; and to create a high-performance electric vehicle at a lower cost.

Another project led by RAD Propulsion is aiming to create an electric propulsion system with no external propeller blades for use in marine vessels. Their CEO, Clive Johnson said: “We are delighted to have been awarded a Driving the Electric Revolution Challenge grant which will support us in bringing the first of our quality electric propulsion systems, RAD40, to the marine marketplace. We are confident this robust, intuitive and easy to use 40Kw drive, for ribs and powerboats, will revolutionise customer experience. The Driving the Electric Revolution grant is instrumental by enabling our supply chain and streamlining our production and manufacturing processes and complexities to assist with our goal of bringing a superior product to market in an ambitious timeframe.”

Driving the Electric Revolution Challenge Director, Dr Will Drury said “These projects form a vital part of the UK’s green economic recovery from COVID-19. By focusing on growing the capability of the UK PEMD supply chain and manufacturing we aim to make the UK a global leader in the manufacture of core technologies which underpin electrification. This is crucial in helping the UK reach net zero by 2050.”