The Ministry of Colleges and Universities has announced the launch of Round 11 of the Ontario Research Fund: Research Excellence (ORF-RE) program. ORF-RE provides research institutions with funding to support the operational costs of major projects of strategic value to the province.
The fund provides up to one third of the total value of a project, with the remaining two thirds coming from a combination of private sector and institutional contributions.
Funding Streams: ORF-RE Round 11 has two application funding streams:
Stream 1: General – Basic and Applied Research
- Is open to all research disciplines;
- Funds projects from $500,000 to $2,000,000; and
- Funds projects up to a maximum of 5 years.
Stream 2: Targeted – Experimental Research
- Funds projects that demonstrate strong commercialization potential, where the innovation is at a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 3 or higher;
- Targets projects in the following sectors:
- Information communications technologies;
- Life sciences and medical devices; and
- Industrial technologies;
- Requires collaboration with an Ontario-based company;
- Funds projects from $300,000 to $1,000,000; and
- Funds projects up to a maximum of 4 years.
For both streams, priority will be given to applications focused on:
- Connected, autonomous, electric vehicles (including battery and powertrain technology); and
- Industrial/mining technologies related to electric vehicles spanning the entire value chain, from minerals to manufacturing to recovering resources from vehicles or their component parts at end-of-life.
Deadlines:
Applications will be due to the Ministry on March 21, 2022. Program guidelines and application forms are expected to be available no later than October 29, 2021. Further information on Western Research internal deadlines and resources will be forthcoming when the program guidelines are released.
More information: Ministry’s website. If you have questions regarding the program, please contact Carolyn Paterson, Acting Director, Research Development.
