Green Heat Innovation Support Programme

About the programme

The GHISP supports innovation and capital investment that will accelerate the roll out and adoption of green heating solutions and associated products.

It's about encouraging the growth of Scotland’s green heat market and helping projects in areas such as:

• Energy efficiency products
• Green heat equipment, such as heat pumps and heat networks
• Supporting solutions, such as thermal storage
• Enabling solutions, such as digital and smart controls
• Green heat manufacturing or R&D in Scotland

We’re delivering GHISP in partnership with Scottish Government, Highlands & Islands Enterprise and South of Scotland Enterprise.

How can I access funding?

Funding will be available to companies across Scotland until March 2026 and can be accessed in various ways, including:

• Grant funding – open to applications at all times, support is available for large-scale company R&D and capital investment projects focused on innovation in the crucial areas of green heat
• Feasibility studies – these competitive funding calls help Scotland-based businesses develop innovative green heat solutions, focusing on technology readiness levels five to seven
• CAN DO Innovation Challenges – using the Scotland CAN-DO approach, this route supports public sector innovation challenges. It provides innovators with 100% funding via R&D service contracts through a competitive procurement process to fund the development of solutions. Its end goal is the deployment of commercial products and a contract with a challenge sponsor. It’s expected two CAN DO Innovation Challenges will be launched as part of the programme - the first has now launched
• European funding, through the Clean Energy Transition Partnership - a new transformative research, development and innovation programme which will support transnational collaborative projects designed to accelerate the energy transition. The programme has now launched, is open to organisations based in Scotland, and is delivered by Scottish Enterprise.

Find out more about the Clean Energy Transition Partnership Programme

How much funding is available?

The total programme funding available over the four-year period is £17.6 million.

There are three different levels of support, depending on which route your project takes. These are:

Large R&D and Capital Grant Funding

Grant values will vary depending on your proposal type – whether it's an R&D or a capital investment project, for example.

The level of grant support will depend on project activity, the size of your company and the location. Once an amount has been allocated, you'll be required to fund the rest of the project independently.

All companies based in Scotland, or those which plan to have a base in Scotland, can apply. You'll have the chance to discuss the full details with your advisor.

Feasibility Studies

Grant support for 100% of the eligible project costs is available. This will allow companies to do a detailed design and assessment of the technical and commercial feasibility of the proposed solution over a period of three to four months.

A minimum of £30,000 and a maximum of £50,000 grant funding is available.

The first feasibility call has now closed. Another is being scheduled to take place May 2024 (TBC).

CAN DO Innovation Challenges

Competitive procurement process which will fund 100% of project costs if successful. Each procurement exercise will be seeking solutions to specific challenges faced in green heat.

Further information will be made available ahead of the launch of the first challenge call expected in November 2023.

Am I eligible?

If your project can help accelerate the use of green heating solutions and associated products, we’d like to hear from you.

You can apply to the fund if you have:

• A company of any size based in Scotland, or a company looking to invest in Scotland
• Plans to use existing green heat technology in an innovative way – your focus should centre on product development, industrial testing of new products, systems integration, or manufacturing process improvement, that will lead to green heat and energy efficiency solutions

All applicants are subject to a check on ownership and finances.

How will applications be assessed?

All grants provided under GHISP must be focussed in one or more of the following areas:

• Heat network component manufacture
• Heating product and component manufacture (including all types of heat pumps etc)
• Energy efficiency product and component manufacture
• Enabling product and component manufacture, such as thermal storage, smart controls and/or digital

All grants are given in line with Scottish Government and Scottish Green Party Draft Shared Policy Programme: working together to build a greener, fairer, independent Scotland.

Grants should be focused on product development, industrial testing of new products, systems integration, manufacturing process improvement, or supporting new manufacturing operations.

Applications should demonstrate clear potential for reducing the cost of technologies, improving productivity or integration into the Scottish building stock, or supporting Scotland as a location for manufacture.

Timescales

The GHISP will run until March 2026.

Application times vary, but are typically between four and twelve weeks, depending on the size and scale of your project. You can discuss this with your assigned grant appraisal officer.

Next steps

If you'd like to apply, download and complete an expression of interest form.

You should send the completed form(s) to enquiries@scotent.co.uk

If you’re successful, you’ll be invited to submit a full grant application.

Download an expression of interest form (PDF, 365kB)