DRIVE35 Scale-up Fund

DRIVE35 Scale-up Fund

Supports United Kingdom zero-emission vehicle makers through DRIVE35 grants for manufacturing innovation scaling.

DRIVE35 is a £150,000,000 rolling grant fund administered by Innovate UK in partnership with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC). The fund opened on 17 September 2025 at 9:30am UK time with no stated closing date, making it a continuous opportunity for eligible organisations to apply at any point. DRIVE35 is the current evolution of the Driving the Electric Revolution (DER) initiative and focuses specifically on creating scale-up manufacturing facilities for zero emission vehicle (ZEV) technologies in the UK — targeting the step from prototype to production-scale manufacturing rather than early-stage R&D.

Eligible applicants must be UK-registered organisations; both individual companies and collaborative projects may apply. Non-UK entities may participate in collaborations but must incorporate a UK-registered entity and have UK staff operational before any work begins, and grant disbursement cannot occur until UK registration is in place. The fund covers a broad range of ZEV manufacturing sub-sectors, including electric drivetrains, power electronics, batteries, and related advanced manufacturing systems. Award sizes and specific cost-eligibility thresholds are set out in PDF guidance documents that were not captured at the time of data collection.

DRIVE35 is positioned for companies that have already demonstrated a zero emission vehicle technology and are ready to invest in the physical infrastructure and equipment needed to manufacture at scale. The involvement of APC UK as a co-funder signals an expectation that supported projects will contribute to the broader UK automotive supply chain transition. Given the rolling structure and large total fund, applicants can prepare applications on their own timeline, but early engagement with APC UK and the DBT account management team is advisable to confirm scope alignment before submitting.