Consumer Led Flexibility for the Clean Energy Superpower Mission

Key Features

UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £25 million for pre-commercialisation projects. This funding is from the UKRI R&D Missions Accelerator Programme through the Clean Energy Superpower Mission.

Programme:     UKRI

Award:     Share of up to £25 million

Opens: 10th Jun 2026

Closes: 26th Aug 2026

TBAT

Interested in applying?

Book a 1-2-1 consultation with our Grant Funding Expert today

Click here

Grant Overview

UKRI will invest up to £25 million from the Consumer Led Flexibility Challenge as part of the Clean Energy Superpower Mission within  UKRI R&D Missions Accelerator Programme.

Grant Scope

The aim of this competition is to support businesses and innovators who are developing noel AI and digital solutions and other innovative product and service solutions.

 

Projects can focus on one or more of the following key themes:

  • Strand 1: Software first approach
    • Multi-market co-optimisation and locational pricing
    • Portfolio reliability and risk transfer
    • Confidence and AI forecasting
    • Feeder level flexibility and resilience
    • Electric Vehicle smart charging and Vehicle to everything (V2X)
    • Heat flexibility with comfort guarantees
    • Open datasets for AI
  • Strand 2. Demand segments
    • Low income households in constrained areas
    • Industrial and commercial anchor loads
    • Residential scaling

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for this grant, projects must have a total grant funding request of between £100,000 and £3 million depending on which research category you are applying for. Projects must last between 4 and 30 months starting by 1st January 2027 and ending by 30th June 2029.

Lead organisation: To work as a sole applicant or lead a collaborative project organisations must be registered in the UK and be a business of any size, research and technology organisation, charity, not for profit, public sector organisation or academic institution.

Project team: To collaborate with the lead, organisations must be a UK registered business of any size, academic institution, charity, not for profit, public sector organisation or research and technology organisation.

Non-funded partners: Projects can include organisations who do not claim funding for work on the project. These costs must be covered from their own resources and can include UK. EU and other non-UK organisations. Non-UK partners are permitted to carry out project work from within their home country and exploit results outside the UK.

Subcontractors: Subcontractors are allowed in this competition and can be used from anywhere in the UK. Overseas subcontractors can be used but you must state why UK subcontractors could not be used.

Number of applications: A business of any size or research and technology organisation can only lead on one application but can be included as a collaborator in a further 2 applications. A business, academic institution, research and technology organisation, charity, not for profit or public sector organisation or a business not leading any application, can collaborate in any number of applications.

Previous applications: Previous applications cannot be used in this competition.

Grant Exclusions

UKRI will not fund the following projects:

  • Projects that do not align with the competition scope and specific thematic areas
  • Projects that do not demonstrate clear staged CLF outcomes
  • Projects that do not demonstrate credible commercial pathways and strong knowledge sharing plans
  • Projects that do not include and end user or energy system expertise in their consortium without clear justification for this absence
  • Projects that do not consider the end user or route to impact and implementation by 2030
  • Projects that are primarily literature review studies or requirement gathering without clear plans for scale up and implementation by 2030
  • Projects not delivering measurable and specific objectives or do not have clear technical novelty or feasibility challenge.

Grant Funding

UKRI have allocated up to £25 million to fund innovation projects. Funding will be in the form of a grant. Under the Research, Development and Innovation Streamlined Route rules, no more than £3 million can be awarded in the form of a grant to any one organisation in any one competition.

If your organisation’s work on the project is commercial or economic, your funding request must not exceed the limits below.

For feasibility studies, industrial research, experimental development and innovation support you can get funding for your eligible project costs of:

Category 1: Feasibility studies (up to £500,000 total funding, per project, 6 months maximum)

Funding available 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

Category 2: Industrial research projects (up to £1 million total funding, per project, 24 months maximum)

Funding available 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

Category 2: Experimental development projects which are nearer to market (up to £3 million total funding, per project, 30 months maximum)

Funding available for your eligible project costs of:

  • up to 45% if you are a micro or small organisation
  • up to 35% if you are a medium sized organisation
  • up to 25% if you are a large organisation

Research participation

The research organisations undertaking non-economic activity as part of the project can share up to 100% of the total eligible project costs. If your consortium contains more than one research organisation undertaking non-economic activity, this maximum is shared between them. Of that 100% you can get funding for your eligible project costs of up to:

  • 100% of your eligible project costs if you are an RTO, charity, not for profit organisation, public sector organisation or research organisation
  • 80% of full economic costs (FEC) if you an academic institution

Eligibility criteria for claiming 80% of FEC funding

  1. Research organisations must use the Transparent Approach to Costing (TRAC) method as the Je-S form has now been decommissioned.
  2. We pay 100% of the 80% Full Economic Cost (FEC). On IFS only enter the 80% being claimed.

For further information on this competition, please see full details.

Full competition details

Interested in applying for this competition?

Book an appointment to speak to one of our advisors to discuss your eligibility to apply for this Grant Funding opportunity.