Almost £5.5m has been shared among 23 projects across the Liverpool City Region aiming to protect coasts and develop green energy technologies.
The funding has been awarded by Innovate UK’s Launchpad programme and will support projects to protect coastal communities from flooding, increase energy efficiency and develop hydrogen, solar and wind power technologies
Other schemes being backed include developing remote-controlled factories and making plastic recycling more efficient.
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Nine projects, involving businesses working with research and technology organisations were awarded a total of just over £4m in the first round.
A second round of competitive grant applications will open this month for advanced manufacturing projects.
Successful projects, receiving between £128,000 and £694,000, include schemes to manufacture:
- An eco-friendly block to help protect coastal communities against climate change-related flooding. The project, run by Liverpool SME Virtus Concrete Solutions Limited in conjunction with Liverpool John Moores University, is to develop a new eco-friendly concrete 'Geoblock’ which would completely replace cement for use in breakwaters and non-structural applications through recycling industrial and domestic wastes.
- Advanced fuel cell technology for large power applications, such as HGVs and marine - delivered by Mersey Fair Air Limited in partnership with KC3 Concrete Equipment Limited, both Liverpool start-ups
A further 14 projects shared a total of £1.44m, receiving up to £100,000 each. These projects are to develop innovations for manufacturing, including:
- A pioneering wind turbine with an eco-friendly energy storage system developed by Enturi, to make significant contributions towards net zero goals and future energy security. It comes as UK companies face an urgent need to decarbonise
- Floating solar arrays. FloGen Limited will research and test construction of very low carbon floating solar power units with structures built from natural and recycled materials
- Energy-efficient ceramic filtration membranes used to produce ultra-clean water, delivered by Evove Limited
Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram said: "The Liverpool City Region has the political will, research strengths and drive to succeed as a leader of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
"It was that ambition and our underlying status as a hotbed of innovation that led to Innovate UK making us one of only two Launchpad pilots in the country.
"This is about attracting more innovation funding into our region and the wider North, helping us to create secure, well-paid jobs and training opportunities for local people who, for far too long, have been held back from fulfilling their potential not by a lack of talent, but a lack of opportunity. As Mayor, I’m working to put that right.
"It is fantastic to see our Launchpad status starting to bear fruit with this first £5.5m of funding coming into the region.
"But this is just the tip of the iceberg; we have got a £3bn pipeline of new projects still to unlock and, under my plans, will invest 5% of our GVA in innovation over the next few years – nearly double the national target.
"We are positioning ourselves at the forefront of UK science and innovation – and are ready to take advantage of every opportunity that comes our way."
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