DRIVE35 Funding Programme

Capital and R&D funding for the UK automotive industry in the design, development and manufacturing of zero-emission vehicles and their supply chain.

• From: Department for Business and Trade
• Published: 14 July 2025

• Type of support: Grant
• Business stage: Not yet trading, Start-ups (1-2 years trading) and Established
• Industry: Manufacturing and Science and technology
• Number of employees: 0 to 9 employees, 10 to 249 employees, 250 to 500 employees and More than 500 employees
• Region: East Midlands, Eastern, London, North East and North West
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  Northern Ireland, Scotland, South East, South West, Wales, West Midlands, and Yorkshire and the Humber

Who it’s for

Applicants must be UK-registered businesses. DRIVE35 (Driving Research & Investment in Vehicle Electrification) has funding available for businesses of all sizes, including collaborations.

What you can get

A total of £2.5 billion of capital and R&D funding is available via DRIVE35, including £500 million to 2035 to extend R&D support for 10 years.

DRIVE35 is composed of 3 funding pillars, each with individual competition streams. The funding amount available for applicants varies according to each stream.

Find out more about the DRIVE35 Funding Programme and its 3 funding pillars.

Organisers

DRIVE35 (Driving Research & Investment in Vehicle Electrification) is led and delivered by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) in partnership with:

• the Advanced Propulsion Centre
• Innovate UK

on the APC website.

Published 14 July 2025