The Energy Innovation Agency brings together world-leading academic, private sector and public sector expertise to help bridge the energy innovation gap and accelerate the scale and deployment of effective low-carbon energy solutions in Greater Manchester.

What Is The Energy Innovation Agency 

Formed in 2021, The Agency  was created to support the city region become net zero by 2038, connecting innovative energy solutions with end-users to help transition the city-region to a low-carbon economy. We support businesses to accelerate the commercialisation of their solutions and provide a route to market which allows for rapid deployment. 

Bringing together partners including SSE, Hitachi, Bruntwood, University of Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan University, Salford University and Greater Manchester Combined Authority, The Agency aims to accelerate the adoption of net zero technologies across the city-region.  

Focus areas include energy generation and storage, decarbonisation of heat, diversity and flexibility of energy and low-carbon transport. 

With support from our partners, the Agency accelerates the scaling and deployment of the most promising low-carbon energy solutions through a broad service offering, including:

  • Innovator diagnostic

  • R&D and commercialisation

  • Industry Steer

  • Innovation Trial and Demonstration Support

  • Funding and Collaboration Support

  • Investment and Fundraising

  • Deployment and Sales

So far we have supporting innovations which include rooftop-mounted solar hot water collectors, vertical axis wind turbines, electric heating systems, and innovative integration of heat pumps.

How Will The Energy Innovation Agency Help Business Across Greater Manchester?

The Agency works with innovators (businesses, SMEs, and individuals) to validate, develop and scale up effective low-carbon innovations. The Agency's partnership provides access to a wide variety of support that can accelerate commercialisation including R&D, independent testing and real-world pilots. The Agency’s support helps to enable the rapid deployment of products by connecting innovations with end-users.

The Agency works with GM businesses (end-users) and provides the opportunity to solve their greatest energy challenges, by raising a call-to-action to attract and engage with innovators from across the city-region and beyond, to pitch solutions to some of the region’s greatest business problems and accelerate their journey to net zero carbon. 

Those innovators with the most promising innovations can be supported by The Energy Innovation Agency to help create an accelerated roadmap to deployment. The Agency will help them overcome barriers to market and bring the innovations to life, with an ultimate aim to make a lasting impact on Greater Manchester’s carbon emissions.

Innovators can receive support in creating commercialisation roadmaps, R&D and business development pathways and gaining industry feedback from agency partners and potential buyers or end users. The Agency also provides demonstration opportunities for projects and support both funding applications and investor pitching opportunities.

How Will The Energy Innovation Agency Help Communities Across Greater Manchester?

The Energy Innovation Agency will transform Greater Manchester’s energy systems making them cleaner, greener, and more sustainable, lowering carbon emissions and making energy more accessible to communities, businesses, organisations, and industry across the region.

Supporting our existing energy innovators and attracting external investment into the region will create new high quality jobs and cement Greater Manchester as a leader in the net zero space.

By working with innovators, and end-users, to accelerate the energy transition towards a carbon-neutral economy the Energy Innovation Agency can help deploy innovative energy solutions across Greater Manchester and beyond reducing energy bills and increasing energy security across the city-region.