Strategic Innovation Fund: Cycle 1 funding decisions

Decision
Publication date
Industry sector
Distribution Network
Transmission Network

The Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) is a funding mechanism within the RIIO-2 network price control for the Electricity System Operator, Electricity Transmission and Electricity Distribution, Gas Transmission and Gas Distribution sectors.

Working in partnership with Innovate UK, Ofgem aims to find and fund ambitious, innovative projects with the potential to accelerate the transition to net zero. These projects should help shape the future of the gas and electricity networks and succeed commercially where possible.

The fourth round of SIF Innovation Challenges opened to fund applications in September 2024.

We identified 4 Innovation Challenges:

  1. Faster network development
  2. Greater heat flexibility
  3. Embedding resilience
  4. Accelerating towards net zero energy network

On 12 December 2024 we published the decision on funding Cycle 1 Discovery projects.  

On 14 January 2025 we published the decision on funding Cycle 1 Alpha and Beta projects.