LONDON, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Seven British universities that will lead pioneering research into the next generation of battery technology were named Monday by government business secretary Greg Clark.
A new government-backed institute is aimed at making Britain a world leader in battery research and technology, said Clark.
The flagship Faraday Battery Institute will bring together the best minds from seven founding partner universities, Imperial College London, Newcastle University, University College London, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, University of Southampton and University of Warwick.
The institute, with funding from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, is part of government's 327 million U.S. dollar investment in battery technology.
Clark said: "Through the Faraday Research Challenge we are cementing our position as the 'go-to' destination for battery technology so we can exploit the global transition to a low carbon economy."
The Faraday Battery Institute will have a critical role in fostering innovative research collaboration between our world-leading universities and world-beating businesses to make this technology more accessible and more affordable, according to Clark.
Professor Philip Nelson CEO of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), said the Faraday Institute will bring leading academics in the field of battery development together to explore novel approaches that will meet these challenges and accelerate the development of new products and techniques.
The Harwell Science and Innovation campus in Oxfordshire has been named as the administration base for the new institute.
