UKCCSRC 2020 Funding Call

1. Scope of Call

The UKCCSRC invites proposals for CCS research projects that address but are not limited to the following

• The technical, economic and social transition to net-zero, including research related to hydrogen production with CCS
• Seed funding for a piece of work that could lead to a larger bid to other sources of CCS funding later, e.g. a responsive mode application. [But noting that bid preparation in and of itself can’t be funded and that, to avoid duplication, projects should not include work that the Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre would be able to fund]
• Research linked to Mission Innovation priority research directions

2. Call Process and Timeline

Key dates for the UKCCSRC 2020 Funding Call are:

• Call Issued: 20^th December 2019
• Open for submissions: 20^th December 2019
• Closed to submissions: 12pm 14^th February 2020
• Decisions: 14^th April 2020 (or earlier)
• Start Dates: 1^st May 2020

3. Funding

Approximately £300-£450K (100% FEC) is available for up to 15 projects, but the UKCCSRC Board is not obliged to allocate all of these funds during this call. Proposals are expected to be £30K (100% FEC).

Notes for Proposers:

• This call is for proposals to a fixed budget amount of £30K (100% FEC)
• Costings should be submitted at 100% FEC using a SINGLE dummy JeS form
• Research organisations will be paid at 80% of FEC
• Invoices will need to be accompanied by the UKCCSRC breakdown of expenditure form
• No equipment purchase expenditure will be covered but applicants can request funds at reasonable UK academic researcher rates for the use of established research facilities
• If you are successful with your application, you will be required to complete a project agreement with Sheffield on the terms set out in one of the following two templates (one template is for projects where you are the sole project partner and the second, for where you are the lead partner in a consortium). The project details will be added into the final agreement, but no other amendments will be made to the templates. In submitting your application to us, you agree to these terms.

4. Application submission process

Proposals will need to be submitted via the UKCCSRC website with all relevant documentation attached:

• Brief online form:
  • Title of Proposal
  • Principal Investigator
  • Institute
  • Please outline how this proposal aligns with the wider CCS landscape (Max 500 words)
• 2 page proposal
• Dummy EPSRC JeS form with all sections filled in, only one JeS form will be accepted, all information must be collated into one JeS form for the lead PI’s institute (but no attachments)
• Justification of Resources document
• UKCCSRC Data and Information Archive Data Management Questionnaire
• Unlimited pages of user support letters

The proposal must include:

• The issues that the proposal addresses and links to relevant supporting policy material
• Details of proposed research
• Cost breakdowns (for proposals covering multiple organisations individual budgets will be required as part of the submission and costs by institution must be clearly identified in the dummy JeS and the Justification of Resources form)
• Timetable/Gantt chart
• Deliverables
• Impact delivery means and activities

5. Eligibility

Members of all organisations eligible to receive EPSRC funding may participate in proposals, subject to them personally also meeting the EPSRC funding requirements. Note that the EPSRC’s Repeatedly Unsuccessful Applicants policy does not apply to this call. All proposals must have a UKCCSRC academic member as the Principal Investigator (see membership requirements) and individual UKCCSRC members can be PI in no more than one proposal.

6. Co-funding, industrial support and collaboration

The Centre is keen to encourage researchers to attract co-funding and industrial support for their proposals, which will be taken into account within the value for money assessment criteria. Applications will also be expected to show active engagement with industry or other research users.

Researchers that envisage collaboration with other UKRI funded bodies should seek advice beforehand from the UKCCSRC Secretariat in order to identify any potential contractual difficulties prior to proposal submission.

7. Application assessment process

Proposals will be assessed by independent reviewers reporting to the UKCCSRC Board and funding will be decided solely by the Board based on their recommendations. The review process will include consideration of the following factors; the Board may interpret and apply them as it sees fit to suit the particular circumstances.

8. Expected grant duration

Grants will be expected to run for a period from 3 months up to a maximum of 6 months.

All approved proposals should be able to start no later than 1^st May 2020.  Any grants that are not making progress as planned by this date, or at any time subsequently, will have their funding allocation reviewed and may be withdrawn.

All approved proposals must end by 31st October 2020 in order to meet the objectives of the funding call. There will be no extensions past this point under any circumstances.

Contacts

If you have any questions about the UKCCSRC 2020 Funding Call please get in touch with Carys Blunt, Finance and Interim Centre Manager at carys@ukccsrc.ac.uk, or on 0114 2157228.

The PI and Co-Is of the UKCCSRC grant are not acting as contact points for this call and will not be involved in the handling or review of received applications.

Deadline: 12pm 14^th February 2020