Innovate UK Innovation Loans Future Economy: Round 16

UK registered businesses can apply for loans for innovative projects with strong commercial potential to significantly improve the UK economy.

Competition opens: Thursday 27 June 2024
Competition closes: Wednesday 28 August 2024 12:00pm

Description

Innovate UK is offering up to £25 million in loans to micro, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Innovate UK innovation loans are for highly innovative late stage research and development (R&D) projects with the best potential for the future. There must be a clear route to commercialisation and economic impact.

The project must lead to innovative new products, processes or services that are significantly ahead of others currently available, or propose an innovative use of existing products, processes or services. It can also involve a new or innovative business model.

The project must focus on one or more of the future economy areas included in the Innovate UK plan for action.

You must be able to show that you:

• need public funding
• can cover interest payments
• will be able to repay the loan on time

Eligibility

You can apply for a loan of between £100,000 and £2 million to fund your project’s eligible costs.

Projects can last up to five years, including both the R&D and commercialisation phases. Projects are expected to start by 1 April 2025. Your exact project start date and first innovation loan drawdown will depend on the timing of the final credit committee decision and completion of loan documentation.

To receive an innovation loan for a new project you must:

• be a UK registered micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME)
• carry out your project from or in the UK
• intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
• give evidence that your business is suitable to take on a loan

Scope

This competition offers loans to help businesses overcome barriers to their innovations becoming a successful, commercial reality. The aim is to make a considerable economic impact which results in significant, sustainable business growth.

Your proposal must demonstrate:

• a clearly expressed and compelling innovative idea
• a robust and deliverable business plan that addresses and shows evidence of market potential and needs
• a team with the necessary skills and experience to run and complete the project successfully and on time, and take the outputs forward
• awareness of all the main risks the project and business will face, with realistic plans to manage, mitigate and minimise the impact of each of these
• sound, practical financial plans and timelines that represent good value for money and ability to repay the loan
• why you are unable to fund the project from your own resources or other forms of public or private sector funding
• a clear, evidence-based plan to deliver significant economic impact, return on investment (ROI) and growth through commercialisation, as soon as possible after project completion

Dates

• 27 June 2024 Publication date
• 27 June 2024 Financial Submission guidance and guide to a Good Project Application: access the resources website
• 27 June 2024 Competition opens
• 9 July 2024 Online briefing event: Register to Attend
• 17 July 2024 Deep dive financial workshop 1: register here
• 23 July 2024 Deep dive financial workshop 2: register here
• 31 July 2024 Deep dive financial workshop 3: register here
• 28 August 2024 12:00pm Competition closes
• 9 October 2024 Applicants notified of progress to detailed credit analysis
• 18 October 2024 Applicants notified
• 18 October 2024 Applicants notified
• 3 February 2025 Final lending decisions notified
• 1 April 2025 Expected project start date

How to apply

Before you start

An application for an innovation loans competition needs different information from one for a grant application. Even if you have applied for funding from Innovate UK before, you are strongly advised to read the innovation loans guidance before you start.

They will run an online applicant briefing webinar on Tuesday 9th July 2024. This webinar will provide essential information on innovation loans, including the scope of the programme, the application process for both the project and financial aspects, the assessment process and the approach to our credit decision making process. This webinar will also be recorded.

Before submitting, it is your responsibility to make sure:

• that all the information provided in the application is correct
• your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria
• all sections of the application are marked as complete

What we ask you

The application is split into three sections:

• Business and financial details.
  This includes a link to questions that you must answer about your business. You must complete the spreadsheet template in full, to provide financial information about your business for the full period of your loan request.
• 2. Project questions.
• 3. Project finances.