Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure 2: Alternative Fuels
A share of up to £150 million is available for UK‑registered organisations to develop and deploy alternative fuels projects in clean maritime technology.
This competition opens on 26 March 2026 and closes at 11am on 16 September 2026.
Who it is for
This competition is open to collaborations only.
To lead a collaborative project, your organisation must:
- be a UK-registered business of any size
- be, or collaborate with, a UK-registered ship owner, manufacturer or operator
- be, or collaborate with, a UK-registered infrastructure owner or operator, for example, a port, harbour, marina, inland waterway authority or wind farm
To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be one of the following UK-registered:
- business of any size
- academic institution
- charity
- not-for-profit
- public sector organisation
- research and technology organisation (RTO)
Your project must:
- have total eligible costs between £6 million and £60 million
- start by 1 April 2027
- claim all grant funding by 31 December 2029
- complete a non-funded three-year demonstration, starting by 1 January 2030 and ending by 31 December 2032
- have a maximum grant funding request of £30 million, with no more than £20 million allocated to a single participant
Support you can get
This competition is part of the UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) programme, which aims to accelerate the technologies required to decarbonise the UK’s maritime sector.
This competition is made up of three strands, each targeting a different innovation area:
- Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure 2: Alternative Fuels (this strand)
- Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure 2: Electric Power
- Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure 2: Energy Efficiency
This strand supports projects that develop, build and operate vessels powered by alternative fuels, along with associated port or shoreside refuelling infrastructure.
For industrial research projects, you can get funding for your eligible project costs of up to:
- 70% if you are a micro or small organisation
- 60% if you are a medium-sized organisation
- 50% if you are a large organisation
For experimental development projects which are nearer to market, you can get funding for your eligible project costs of up to:
- 45% if you are a micro or small organisation
- 35% if you are a medium-sized organisation
- 25% if you are a large organisation
Support organisers
- Department for Transport (DFT)
- Innovate UK