Funding aims to boost civil nuclear power innovation in UK

The investment, which is being awarded through the Technology Strategy Board, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the EPSRC, will fund feasibility projects, collaborative research and development and knowledge transfer partnerships that stimulate innovation and strengthen the UK supply chain. The competitions for collaborative R&D projects and feasibility studies will support innovative technologies to help UK business benefit from the resurgence in civil nuclear fission power generation and decommissioning. Applicants will have to show how they will help strengthen the UK supply chain whilst contributing to the high level, long term challenge of developing cost effective and safe solutions with high reliability and durability in the nuclear sector. They must also take account of the key issues of regulation, health and safety and non-proliferation. The targeted call for knowledge transfer partnerships is focused specifically on the exchange of knowledge and skills from academia into the nuclear supply chain and will be run in parallel with the other competitions. It aims to help businesses improve their competitiveness, productivity and performance in the nuclear sector through the better use of the knowledge, technology and skills that are already available within the UK knowledge base. The feasibility and collaborative R&D competitions open on 2 July 2012 and the deadline for registration is 29 August 2012. The deadline for submitting feasibility applications and expressions of interest in collaborative R&D is 5 September 2012. For further information visit http://www.innovateuk.org/_assets/comp_nuclear_crd_final.pdf.