The UK’s automotive sector is to benefit from almost £130m of government investment to discover new zero emission technologies and support skilled jobs nationwide.
Delivered through the UK’s modern industrial strategy, the funding will support over 1,800 jobs and thousands more in the supply chain across the UK.
Automotive firms and R&D partners have been awarded nearly £50m in government funding that will help businesses build and produce the zero emission vehicle technologies of the future at scale.
The government says this will help to drive economic growth while simultaneously making EVs cheaper for consumers.
This latest funding is delivered through the DRIVE35 programme, the biggest government investment into the UK’s car industry of the post-war era, with £4bn pledged to 2035.
The government says this builds on its mission to reindustrialise every part of the UK, back British innovation and ensure companies are able to succeed and scale within the whole of the UK.
The government added it is ‘doubling down’ on its commitment to delivering growth in every region. With the North East and West Midlands serving as the UK’s powerhouse regions for automotive manufacturing, this funding will provide vital support to flagship companies such as Turntide Technologies and Bentley.
The funding award from the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade is facilitated via the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC) in partnership with Innovate UK.
“This investment is about far more than individual projects – it is about strengthening the UK’s capability to design, develop and build the technologies that will define the vehicles of the future,” says Ian Constance, chief executive at the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK.
“By bringing together industry, government and academia, DRIVE35 is helping create the conditions for long-term growth, increasing investor confidence and reinforcing the UK’s position as one of the world’s leading destinations for automotive innovation.”
