The Shell Springboard competition opens today for applications from UK businesses with solutions to reduce carbon emissions.
One national winner will receive £150,000 and a further five regional winners will each get £40,000 of equity-free funding from Shell, as well as advice from leading academics, investors and policymakers, to help scale-up their enterprises.
Since launch in 2005, the programme has awarded more than £3.5 million to 92 enterprises at the cutting edge of the low-carbon economy. Almost 80% of supported companies remain in operation five years after starting-up, in contrast to a national average of about 45%.
Shell UK Country Convenor, Sinead Lynch, said: “The UK has tremendous potential to lead low-carbon innovation. In fact, our research with Imperial College London shows that UK universities are some of the strongest globally in spinning-out low-carbon start-ups.”
The Shell Springboard has supported a range of some of low-carbon UK business, including:
- C-Capture (2016 winner) – clean energy technology that captures carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from different industrial gas streams.
- Deciwatt’s Gravity Light (2015 winner) – technology to generate light from gravity, providing a safe alternative to kerosene lamps for off-grid communities.
- Bio-Bean (2014 national finalist) – industrialised process to recycle waste coffee grounds into advanced biofuels.
Applications are open until 28 October 2016 and winners will be announced in Spring 2017.
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