The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) and Innovate UK are offering contracts of up to £50k to develop battery technologies that solve defence challenges and strengthen UK supply chains.
This is a Contracts for Innovation competition, so winners are paid to deliver R&D for the government rather than receiving a grant. That means 100% of your eligible costs are covered. There’s £2 million available and up to 40 projects will be funded, with the Ministry of Defence helping to shape and assess the work. Phase 1 projects last up to three months and can lead to a larger phase 2.
Below, I have explained the key things you need to know about this competition before you apply: who is eligible, how much funding is on the table, and what the application process looks like.
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Who is Eligible?
Your Organisation
Organisations of any size can lead a project, from a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise to a large business. You don’t need to be UK-based to apply, and organisations from the EU, EEA and further afield are eligible.
Contracts are only awarded to a single legal entity, so this isn’t a collaborative competition. You can work alone or bring in others as subcontractors for specialist skills, including:
- Businesses
- Charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups
- Research and technology organisations (RTOs)
- Research organisations
Your Project
Your project must:
- End by 31 March 2027
- Have total costs of between £20k and £50k, including VAT
- Last up to three months
- Start by 1 January 2027
The majority of the project work and key deliverables must be carried out in the UK, and most of the funding must be spent within the UK.
Your project must also:
- Address at least one of the challenge areas listed below
- Deliver a use case and an outline business case, backed by evidence like simulation, prototyping or demonstrator trials
- Focus on battery cell manufacturing or battery pack design and manufacturing technologies that fit a defence environment
- Have at least 50% of the contract value going directly to R&D
- Include a credible plan to commercialise your results
- Set out your goals and your plan for phase 2
The competition prioritises projects at higher Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) that can move quickly towards operational use. The challenge areas are:
- Defining the most effective level of standardisation for cells, battery packs, interfaces or use cases
- Dual-use transition of defence standard batteries, like Li-ion 6T and BB-2590, into civilian markets
- Integration of civilian automotive battery modules into land, air or maritime defence platforms
- Progression of a UK High Power (UKHP) cell production facility
- UK-based design and manufacture of battery packs using 18650 and 21700 cells
- UK-based development of secure, modular Battery Management Systems (BMS)
- UK-based low volume and custom cell manufacture
- UK-based supply of high performance cell manufacturing technologies, like pouch cells, primary cells, Li-S, Li-metal anodes and Na-ion
BIST won’t fund projects that:
- Are covered by existing commercial agreements to deliver the proposed solution
- Aren’t original and duplicate someone else’s work
- Directly duplicate other UK Government or EU funded work you’re already delivering
- Don’t address one of the challenge areas
- Don’t evidence the potential for positive economic or societal impact
- Don’t focus on battery technologies
- Don’t generate impactful outputs that can be shared
How Much Funding Can I Apply For?
Contracts for Innovation cover 100% of your eligible project costs, whatever the size of your organisation.
Individual contracts range from £20k to £50k, including VAT.
Applying as a Company
Contracts for Innovation is a procurement of R&D services. Your costs must reflect actual costs at fair market value and can’t include profit.
Funding Example
If you’re VAT registered and your project costs £40,000 before VAT, VAT is added automatically and your total comes to £48,000. The contract covers the full £48,000, so you won’t need to find match funding.
There are no advance payments, though. You’re paid monthly in arrears as you complete milestones, so plan your cash flow before the project starts.
Applying as a Non-Commercial Organisation
Contracts are open to organisations of any size, and full economic cost (FEC) calculations don’t apply. Universities, research organisations and RTOs can also join a project as subcontractors, providing specialist skills to the lead applicant.
How Do I Apply?
The deadline for applications is 4 November 2026.
Applications are submitted via Innovate UK’s Innovation Funding Service (IFS) portal.
The application is split into three sections:
Project Details
This section isn’t scored, but it’s used to check your project fits the scope. It covers:
- Applicant location, including any subcontractors
- Application details, like your project title, start date and duration
- How long your organisation has been established
- How you heard about the competition
- Project and scope summary
- Public description
- Your organisation’s primary focus area
Most answers in this section are limited to 400 words, though the project and scope summary can be up to 800.
Application Questions
There are 13 questions in total:
- Six unscored questions covering topics like your chosen theme, animal testing, permits and licences, international collaboration, export licences and Trusted Research and Innovation
- Seven scored questions covering your proposed idea, technical approach, state of the art and IP, project plan, team, costs and value for money, and commercial potential
You can include appendices (PDFs of up to two A4 pages) for your proposed idea and your costs. A project plan or Gantt chart appendix is required for the project plan question.
Finances
You’ll confirm your VAT status and enter your phase 1 project costs, which must match the milestones and payments in your project plan.
Your application will be reviewed by five independent assessors. Their individual scores will be combined to determine your final result.
If you’re successful, you’ll be notified by 30 November 2026.
Like with most competitions, Innovate UK takes a ‘portfolio approach’ by funding projects across different technologies, markets and technological maturities. This means that a strong score won’t necessarily guarantee that your application will be successful.
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