The International Maritime Organisation's Greenhouse Gas study highlighted that maritime transportation emits around 940 million tonnes of CO2 annually and is responsible for around 2.5% of global greenhouse gas. Without action it is projected to increase between 50% and 250% by 2050\. With the ever-increasing global focus on sustainability and decarbonisation, the IMO targets a 50% reduction in emissions by 2050\. In parallel, marine authorities are mandating greener drive solutions, especially in closed areas such as marinas and city waterways. Technology has a key role to play in achieving an aggressive reduction in CO2\. However, the industry must evolve to adapt new technologies that increase sustainability, especially technologies that have been developed and demonstrated in other industries, such as the automotive sector. CHAMP (Clean Hybrid Alternative Marine Powertrains), led by Mathwall Engineering Limited, aims to demonstrate the potential performance that can be achieved with introduction of hybrid technology in recreational, defence and small to medium-sized commercial vessels. The project will develop and prototype key technologies, including the application of sustainable fuels, enabling rapid deployment of hybrid powertrains across these sectors. This approach provides a significant step towards zero emission capability. The project will also build the technology road map to deliver zero emission capability through follow-on steps. Mathwall Engineering has designed a unique architecture and control strategy that provides leading levels of sustainable operation, whilst allowing access to the high performance potential of a hybrid powertrain. The project aims to: 1) Validate the role of hybrid powertrains in marine markets, evaluating technical and commercial feasibility of our proposed architecture. 2) Develop, manufacture and demonstrate key technologies that enable deployment of a hybrid solution. 3) Support the design process with digital engineering tools and techniques, plus rig based validation, allowing programme timing to be significantly compressed. 4) Deliver a technical demonstration rib, validating project concept targets and attributes in a suitably challenging real-world setting. 5) Investigate and demonstrate an operational model, allowing a recreational boat club to deliver services in a carbon neutral environment. 6) Create a roadmap that helps industry achieve electric and zero carbon propulsion, including the commercial strategy for interfacing with global boat manufacturers and system integrators, enabling UK marine powertrain industry to position itself as the premiere supplier of technology and products for hybrid and zero emission marine solutions. CHAMP aims to build sovereign capability and position the project partners at the forefront of sustainable propulsion in marine applications.

* Geothermal energy is the only baseload (24/7) renewable energy source which is scalable effectively to replace present-day fossil fuel installed capacity. Geothermal energy although available in abundance below our feet everywhere is rarely considered commercially viable due to the subsurface challenges related to high drilling costs. * Successful geothermal projects rely on accessing cost effectively the correct geothermal gradient which varies significantly on the geology between 15ᵒC to more than 100ᵒC per km drilled. To meet the requirements to produce significant and sustainable power requires drilling to depth where optimum temperature are between 240ᵒC - 300ᵒC. The UK is considered not viable for geothermal with only a few small scale projects being developed due to the lower geothermal gradients (20 -- 30 ᵒC/km). * GA DRILING have developed plasma drilling technology for faster and more cost-effective drilling through hard rock as an enabling technology for ultra-deep geothermal power. The plasma technologies used have included electric arc and chemically assisted creation of pulses. Recent theoretical studies have focused on combustion and the objective of this project is to develop a combustion system that will meet the requirements for plasma drilling of hard rock. * The proposed project will contribute to the development of PLASMABIT by theoretical studies of combustion at high pressures at University of Brighton with experimental studies performed by MTECH-UK ASSOCIATES LTD in a combustion bomb designed by ADVANCED ANALYSIS LIMITED. GA DRILLING LIMITED will ensure that the combustion system design is compatible with down hole tool requirements and the heat produced from combustion meets the requirements for PLASMABIT drilling. * The target by the end of the project is to have sufficient simulation and experimental data to specify the combustion system for a full-scale drilling tool and for GAD to have incorporated this combustion system into the full-scale design. * Commercial exploitation of the project results for each partner is as follows: 1. GA DRILLING - Ongoing development of the commercial drilling system. Manufacture and sub-assembly of the drilling tool from 2025 with MTECH-UK ASSOCIATES LTD as a supplier for combustion system sub-assemblies 2. MTECH-UK ASSOCIATES - Further involvement with GA DRILLING to develop commercial systems. Manufacture and testing of combustion sub-assemblies for commercial drilling systems from 2025\. Leveraging the motorsports supply base in UK for precision machining / ALM of advanced materials. 3. University of Brighton - Extended capabilities in high pressure combustion modelling. Further involvement with GA DRILLING to develop commercial systems. 4. ADVANCED ANALYSIS LIMITED - Further involvement with GA DRILLING to develop commercial systems.