Search Website
QUICK LINKS:
Ontario Research Fund - Research Excellence
The Ontario Research Fund - Research Excellence program 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.
Award Value
Note: This competition deadline has now passed. Timelines and resources are for information only, and will be updated when new competition information becomes available.
Dates & Deadlines
| Date & Time | Events & Required Steps |
|---|---|
| Thursday, August 10, 2023 |
Preliminary budget & draft including Mitigating Economic and Geopolitical Risk Checklist to Western Research. |
| Wednesday, September 6, 2023 |
Information for institutional letters, draft partner letters of support and final budget submitted to Western Research in order to guarantee the required institutional letters. (for both Western-led projects and co-applicants on external proposals.) |
| Wednesday, September 20, 2023 |
Final proposal, all letters of support (collaborating institutions, partners, end users), and ROLA proposal submitted to Western Research. |
| Wednesday, September 27, 2023. by/before 5 p.m. ET |
Submission of applications to the Ministry by Western Research |
Application Streams
ORF-RE Round 12 has two application streams:
- Stream 1: General - Basic and Applied Research
- Open to all research disciplines
- Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 1 or 2
- Funds projects from $500,000 to $2,000,000
- 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
- Requires collaboration with an Ontario-based company
- Funds projects from $300,000 to $1,000,000
- Funds projects up to a maximum of 4 years
For both streams, priority will be given to applications focused on:
- Automotive (includes electric vehicles)
- Artificial Intelligence
- Critical Minerals (includes research that supports Ontario's Ring of Fire)
- Genomics
- Life Sciences
- Medical Devices
- Quantum Technology
Please note that the above amounts are inclusive of 40% indirect costs. The maximum direct research costs are therefore approximately $1.42M for Stream 1, and $714K for Stream 2. Cash from partners will be subject to an indirect cost rate of 25%.
Contact Us
For more information or questions relating to the ORF-RE program, please contact Deanne van Tol and Suramya Mihindukulasuriya, Institutional Research Programs Officers.