Funding will boost growth and create jobs throughout the UK, as well as move towards an era of zero-emission shipping.

New government funding will decarbonise sea travel and cement the UK’s status as a clean energy superpower

Part of the government’s Plan for Change, extra funding will boost regional economies and drive investment and employment opportunities

Previous funding has already supported over 300 organisations across every nation and region in the UK and secured over £100 million of private investment

The UK government has announced £30 million in new funding to decarbonise maritime sector and solidify the nation’s position as a clean energy power, according to GOV.UK’s release.

 The (CMDC6)

The funding comes from the latest round of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC6), launched today (16 January 2025). CMDC is designed to support clean maritime technologies including electric, hydrogen, ammonia, methanol, wind power and more.

Previous rounds of the competition

Previous rounds of the competition have seen funding delivered to over 300 organisations, bringing in more than £100 million of private investment across the UK.

Successful projects have included the installation of Britain’s first electric chargepoint network across ports in the South West, the largest ever retrofit of a hydrogen research vessel in Wales and the installation of a state-of-the-art carbon capture system on a vessel.

Applications for CMDC6 will be open from January 24th

Maritime Minister, Mike Kane, said: This new £30 million investment is part of our Plan for Change – growing the economy and making Britain a clean energy superpower.

Applications for CMDC6 will be open from January 24th to April 16th, 2025.

The successful implementation of the AirWing project, an innovative wind propulsion system developed by GT Wings with support from previous CMDC funding, demonstrates the potential of these initiatives. This project is expected to significantly reduce fuel consumption and emissions for Carisbrooke Shipping’s vessels, showcasing the positive impact of collaboration between government, industry, and innovators. This latest round of funding brings the total investment through the CMDC to £159 million.

Scale up novel solutions 

Chris Courtney, CEO, National Manufacturing Institute Scotland said:Clean maritime is a vital part of a wider mission to decarbonise transport. Advanced manufacturing is critical to enable companies to scale up novel solutions that deliver emissions reductions and allow the creation of new jobs in these industries of the future.

We’ve spent the past 2 years working on the CMDC-funded MariLight projects, led by Glasgow-based Malin Marine Consultants, part of the Malin Group, supported by industry partners, where we demonstrated how advanced manufacturing can cut lead times, lower carbon, and enable localised production in shipbuilding. It’s great to see continued momentum through the programme, and we look forward to supporting Smart Green Shipping’s journey as it scales.

£3.85 million to the Clean Maritime Research Hub

On the other hand building on its commitment to clean up shipping and deliver on the UK’s climate ambitions, UK SHORE is also delivering £3.85 million to the Clean Maritime Research Hub. Formed from a consortium of 13 universities across the UK, dedicated to conducting scientific research in clean maritime, the funding will enable the hub to continue its important research, and support the installation of a liquid hydrogen facility at Durham University. The centre will develop the maritime sector’s understanding of the potential impact of liquid hydrogen – which is emission free - in the clean maritime transition.

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Source : Press -Release