Department for Business and Trade
UK government department for business, industry and trade; awarded £18.5m Altilium grant in April 2026.
Last refreshed: 22 April 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Is DBT's grant-making enough to anchor advanced manufacturing in Britain, or just topping up firms that are already leaving?
Timeline for Department for Business and Trade
Awarded £18.5m grant to Altilium for EV battery recycling in Plymouth
UK Startups and Innovation: Altilium and TraqCheck headline £76.7m UK tech week- What does the Department for Business and Trade do?
- DBT is the UK Government department responsible for business policy, international trade, export promotion, and bilateral trade agreements. It was created in February 2023 from a split of the former Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
- Why did DBT give Altilium an £18.5m grant?
- DBT awarded £18.5m to Altilium on 16 April 2026 to support the Plymouth-based EV battery recycling company as part of the UK industrial strategy to anchor advanced manufacturing supply chains domestically.Source: DBT
- When was the Department for Business and Trade created?
- DBT was created in February 2023 when the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy was split, with energy and net-zero functions separated into a distinct department.
- How much was invested in UK tech the week of 17 April 2026?
- UK tech funding rose 45% week on week to £76.7m in the seven days to 17 April 2026, with the Altilium DBT grant and a TraqCheck Series A among the headline deals.Source: Dealroom / Lowdown
Background
The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) made a £18.5m grant to Altilium, the Plymouth-based EV battery recycling company, on 16 April 2026, as part of a week in which £76.7m flowed into UK tech — a 45% rise week on week . The Altilium award reflects DBT's role as the grant-making Arm in the UK industrial strategy, sitting alongside DSIT (which handles science and innovation) and HM Treasury (which sets tax and finance policy).
DBT was created in February 2023 from a restructuring of the former Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), with energy and net-zero functions separated at the same time. The department is responsible for business policy, international trade, export promotion, and bilateral trade negotiations. It administers the UK's portfolio of free-trade agreements and supports sectors — including advanced manufacturing, clean technology, and life sciences — through direct grant instruments.
Where DSIT backs research infrastructure and the British Business Bank provides finance guarantees, DBT deploys targeted grants to anchor specific commercial outcomes, such as battery recycling capacity in Plymouth. The Altilium grant is part of a broader pattern of state capital being used to build advanced manufacturing supply chains domestically, so that the UK does not simply finance overseas production of the technologies its industrial strategy identifies as strategic.