Grant Scheme

The Grant Scheme will be set up to both support the two main ECH projects at Harwell and East West Rail, as well as supporting smaller projects to get off the ground across the ECH region.

• Support for main projects: It is anticipated there will be user requirements for equipment initially needed to access a new 5G service across both capital projects. At Harwell there may be a need for indoor wireless equipment to enable an indoor 5G service for example on assembly lines or monitoring devices. Farms wishing to trial automation on farm equipment may need devices installed on tractors for example that enable these to be used autonomously.
• Small foundation projects: Subject to budget, we aim to hold a fund available for public sector organisations across the ECH region to apply for a grant to initiate small foundation 5G projects around specific use cases. It is expected this will require the recipient to match-fund the grant value.

In both these scenarios there will be a clear transparent application and evaluation process. It is expected there will be one application window initially that would operate during the summer of 2024.

It is possible that with any further funding being made available, these schemes could operate beyond the March 2025 deadline that applies to the DSIT funded core project.