LCQ10: Green Tech Fund
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Question:
The Government established the Green Tech Fund (the Fund) in 2020 to provide funding support to scientific research projects which promote decarbonisation and enhancement of environmental protection in Hong Kong. According to the Government's information, the Government has injected a total of $400 million into the Fund, and the Fund has approved a total of 22 projects so far with a total grant of about $100 million. A total of 191 applications were received and 14 projects were approved in the first round of applications for the Fund, whereas a total of about 100 applications were received and eight projects were approved in the second round of applications. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the total number of applications received in the aforesaid two rounds of applications, and whether it has studied the reasons for the disparity between the number of applications approved and the total number of applications;
(2) in respect of the unsuccessful applications in the aforesaid two rounds of applications, whether it has summed up the reasons why they were not approved, including the components of the assessment criteria (i.e. "potential contributions to decarbonisation and environmental protection", "technical and management capability", "plan for further development of project deliverables" and "financial considerations") that such applications mainly failed to fulfil, with a breakdown of such applications by the main reasons why they were not approved;
(3) given that among the organisations whose applications were approved, around 70 per cent were "designated local public research institutes", while "local companies" and "research and development centres" account for around 30 per cent, whether it has studied the reasons for the lesser number of the latter being granted funding support; of the authorities' plans to assist more applicants (particularly non-public research institutes) in successfully applying for the Fund; and
(4) whether it will consolidate the experience of the aforesaid two rounds of applications to hold seminars for the industry to explain the application process of the Fund and the reasons why previous applications were granted and not granted funding support, so that more applicants will understand how they will be granted funding support successfully, and that projects with potential can be granted funding support more easily?
Reply:
President,
To help Hong Kong achieve the target of carbon neutrality before 2050, the Government has allocated $400 million to the Green Tech Fund (GTF) which was established in 2020 to promote decarbonisation in Hong Kong and provide better and more focused funding support for research and development (R&D) projects that can enhance environmental protection. The GTF supports R&D projects in the priority areas including net-zero electricity generation, energy saving and green buildings, green transport and waste reduction. All applications are vetted and considered by the GTF Assessment Committee which comprises members from the academia, the industry and green groups.
The first and second rounds of applications for the GTF ended in February 2021 and February 2022 respectively. A total of 288 applications were received. About 70 per cent of the applications were submitted by designated local public research institutes, while some 30 per cent were submitted by local companies. Twenty-two projects involving a total grant of around $100 million were approved following careful deliberation by the GTF Assessment Committee. Sixteen of the approved applications were submitted by designated local public research institutes, and the remaining six came from local companies. As the number of applications submitted by local companies was less than that from designated local public research institutes, the number of approved projects from local companies was correspondingly smaller.
The GTF's "Guide to Applicants" provides guidance on application, and sets out the assessment criteria, including potential contributions to decarbonisation and environmental protection (a weighting of 40 per cent), technical and management capability (a weighting of 30 per cent), plan for further development of project deliverables (a weighting of 20 per cent) and financial considerations (a weighting of 10 per cent). The Guide has been uploaded to the GTF webpage (www.gtf.gov.hk), and the aforesaid assessment criteria are applicable to both public institutes and private companies.
The GTF webpage also provides other information relevant to the submission of applications, including "frequently asked questions". It seeks to explain in detail the points to note when making an application, such as the assessment criteria and how the applicants may demonstrate their applications' compliance with such criteria, with a view to enhancing applicants' understanding of the application procedures.
Applications may not receive funding support for different reasons. According to our experience in handling the first and second rounds of applications, the main reason was that the project's potential contribution to decarbonisation and environmental protection was not significant. Other reasons include applicants' failure to submit sufficient information to support their technical and management capability, and the failure to provide any plan for further developing the project deliverables. All unsuccessful applicants were informed of the reasons for not being granted funding support.
To encourage and help eligible institutes and companies to apply for the GTF and to understand the assessment criteria, the GTF Secretariat organises briefings when the GTF is open for application. In the first and second rounds of applications, the GTF Secretariat issued over 1 600 and 1 700 invitation emails to the webinars respectively. The webinars covered introduction to the GTF, application procedures, priority themes, assessment criteria, as well as briefings by members of the GTF Assessment Committee on the major assessment considerations. Video recordings of the webinars have been uploaded to the GTF webpage for reference by members of the public and prospective applicants.
The GTF is now open for the third round of applications until March 14, 2023. To encourage eligible institutes and companies to apply for the GTF and to provide them with assistance, the GTF Secretariat organised a webinar in January this year, and issued close to 2 000 invitation emails to local companies, R&D centres, corporate tenants of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, as well as designated local public research institutes. The GTF Secretariat also provides an email address and an enquiry hotline for handling enquiries on application for the GTF, and will continue to explore different means to enhance communication with potential applicants, with a view to promoting R&D projects that can help Hong Kong decarbonise and enhance environmental protection.
Ends/Wednesday, February 15, 2023
Issued at HKT 15:30
Issued at HKT 15:30
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