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Supporting UK innovation and growth
In Budget 2009 the UK government established the Strategic Investment Fund ( SIF ) to support a range of targeted investments across the UK economy intended to strengthen its capacity for innovation , job creation and growth .
The Strategic Investment Fund is a two year time-limited fund set at £ 750 million . Since its creation it has made a wide range of commitments to a diverse range of projects . These include support for low carbon technologies , advanced manufacturing , British digital infrastructure and UK export promotion .
While it is not a fund that has been open for bidding from organisations or businesses to fund their specific projects , officials from the Department for Business , Innovation and Skills have been working with other government departments and agencies , business , the Technology Strategy Board , the Regional Development Agencies and Scotland , Wales and Northern Ireland to identify suitable investments . In many cases , SIF projects have taken the form of joint investments with some of these key stakeholders , most notably the low carbon projects which have been joint investments with the Department of Energy and Climate Change . This report sets out in detail the projects and technology areas that have already benefited from SIF support . These include :
l A range of new advanced manufacturing technologies , including printable electronics and industrial biotechnology ;
l A range of low carbon energy technologies , including funding for some of the world ’ s most advanced facilities for testing new wave and tidal energy technologies ;
l The world ’ s largest demonstrator programme of its type for ultra-low carbon vehicles ;
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