New $800m grants program to bolster manufacturing industry

The Australian Government will be opening a new $800 million grants program to encourage collaboration on major manufacturing projects in Australia.

The Manufacturing Collaboration Stream provides funding for a small number of large, transformational projects, in which projects should have business-to-business collaboration at their core, or business-to-research collaboration at their core.

The new grants program is created for Australian large-scale manufacturers, where international investors, businesses and researchers are invited to partner on large-scale projects.

The funding will focus on Australia’s six National Manufacturing Priorities, which are Defence, Food and Beverage, Medical Products, Recycling and Clean Energy, Resources Technology and Critical Minerals Processing, and Space.

Eligible projects will receive funding for up to one-third of project costs. Grant sizes range between $20 million and $200 million.

Applications will open between 11 August 11 and 9 September.

Applicants should show how their project aligns with the grant objectives.

The Manufacturing Collaboration Stream is one stream of the Australian Government’s Modern Manufacturing Initiative. The Initiative is a key element of the Government’s $1.5 billion Modern Manufacturing Strategy, which aims to help the Australian manufacturing industry to scale up and become more competitive, sustainable and resilient.

Source: AusTrade