Ayrton Fund

The UK government has committed up to £1 billion through the Ayrton Fund to support clean energy research, development and demonstration (RD&D) between April 2021 and March 2026. This is part of the wider UK commitment to tackle climate change and spend £11.6 billion of International Climate Finance (ICF) over the same period. The Ayrton Fund aims to accelerate the clean energy transition in developing countries, by creating and demonstrating innovative clean energy technologies and business models. It will demonstrate UK leadership and expertise in cutting global emissions through world-leading innovations. It seeks to make clean energy options the most affordable, accessible and attractive options in developing countries. This supports Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and SDG13 (Climate Action). It also supports the ambitions of important initiatives such as the COP26 Glasgow Breakthroughs and Green Grids Initiative. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) jointly manage the Ayrton Fund. They do this through a portfolio of ongoing, new, and scaled-up clean energy platforms and programmes, including thematic challenge programmes, and country and regional demonstrators.