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The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology together with Wellcome, one of the world’s largest biomedical charities, today (Wednesday 6th September) announced approval for the innovative update and expansion programme to the UK’s national synchrotron, Diamond Light Source, at a total project cost of £519.4M. The investment will see 86% come from the UK Government and 14% from Wellcome, the same proportion that has funded Diamond from its beginning.
The full approval of the upgrade, Diamond-II, is part of a major investment drive in cutting-edge facilities to keep UK researchers and innovators at the forefront of discovery and help address global challenges.
Sir Adrian Smith, Chair of the Board of Diamond Light Source and President of the Royal Society comments:
We are delighted that the government and the Wellcome Trust have agreed this substantial investment in science infrastructure which will ensure the UK is at the forefront of world class science. This investment in Diamond-II will strengthen the UK’s global scientific leadership and confirms the UK’s commitment to building on the success Diamond has achieved so far.
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Rt Hon Michelle Donelan MP, said:
Our national synchrotron may fly under the radar as we go about our daily lives, but it has been crucial to some of the most defining discoveries in recent history – from kickstarting Covid drug development that allowed us to protect millions of Britons to advancing treatment for HIV.
Our investment will ensure one of the most pioneering scientific facilities in the world continues to advance discoveries that transform our health and prosperity, while creating jobs, growing the UK economy and ensuring our country remains a scientific powerhouse.
The overall transformational Diamond-II upgrade will take several years of planning and implementation. This will include a “dark period” of 18 months during which there will be no synchrotron light for the user community, followed by a period to fully launch the new facility with three new flagship beamlines and major upgrades to many other beamlines.
Dr Richard Walker, Senior Responsible Owner for Diamond-II comments:
I am very pleased that the UK Government, together with Wellcome, have now approved the upgrade. Given that many other similar facilities around the world are carrying out, or planning, similar upgrades, without the Diamond-II upgrade we would eventually become uncompetitive and enter a rapid decline, to the detriment of UK science and innovation.
UKRI announced last June 2022 an initial investment of £81.5 million over three years working towards Diamond-II. With its first year of preliminary funding, the Diamond-II programme successfully passed the UK Government’s Outline Business Case milestone in November 2021 and has now passed full business case approving the total project cost of £519.4M.
Chief Research Programmes Officer at Wellcome, Cheryl Moore, said:
Diamond Light Source is an example of how investment in critical research infrastructure leads to scientific innovation. Over the past two decades, it has enabled generations of researchers to explore scientific questions that push boundaries, collaborate across disciplines, develop new technologies and make new discoveries to advance health that could not have been pursued elsewhere.
We are pleased to see the UK Government invest in this outstanding research facility, reaffirming the UK’s role as a world leader in science and technology. Wellcome has been a proud supporter of Diamond Light Source since its formation and we’re delighted to continue this partnership, ensuring researchers have the resources needed to transform our understanding of life, health and wellbeing.
Executive Chair of the Science and Technology Facilities Council and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Champion for Infrastructure, Professor Mark Thomson, said:
The UK is home to incredibly talented researchers, but this alone is not sufficient to stay at the forefront of globally competitive science.
It is essential that we also invest in world-class research infrastructure programmes that provide our researchers with the necessary tools to work at the cutting edge.
This investment in Diamond-II will play a crucial role in cementing the UK’s place as a Science Superpower and provide our talented researchers and innovators with the best opportunities to make major breakthroughs across a wide range of disciplines from structural biology to advance materials and battery technologies.
The full upgrade programme will lead to new potential for the UK:
Diamond-II will be delivered by the overall programme which includes:
This year marks 16 years of Diamond Light Source delivering science and innovation to the worldwide science community and 21 years since it was set up in 2002.
Sir Adrian, adds:
We are securing the next decades for Diamond through this upgrade which is due to be delivered by 2030. We are entering a new era of opportunity with the advent of fourth generation synchrotrons. This will be a massive transformation of our capabilities. Progress in accelerator technology means Diamond-II will offer the scientific community in academia and industry the opportunity to exploit much brighter beams and an increased coherence over a large energy range on all our beamlines plus additional beamlines. It will help inspire the next generation of STEM professionals and create new opportunities for researchers in universities, research institutes and industry, ultimately having a lasting impact on our society and the economy.
A recent update to the study led by Technopolis and Diamond estimates a cumulative monetised impact of at least £2.6 billion from the UK’s synchrotron, reflecting very favourably with the £1.4 billion investment made in the facility (2003-2022); a cost that is less than a cup of coffee as each UK taxpayer contributes only £2.45 a year towards it.
This Socio-Economic Impact study included example case studies demonstrating the impact and breadth of Diamond research achievements such as:
UKRI’s commitment to Diamond is part of the £481m UKRI has allocated to infrastructure within the UKRI portfolio between 2022 and 2025 for 23 major infrastructure projects and 9 scoping studies to maintain the UK’s position as a science superpower.
The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), is the UK’s largest public funder of research into particle and nuclear physics, astronomy and astrophysics, and space science. It operates five national laboratories across the UK which, supported by a network of additional research facilities, increase our understanding of the world around us and develop innovative technologies in response to pressing scientific and societal issues. It also facilitates UK involvement in a number of international research activities including CERN, the James Webb Space Telescope and the Square Kilometre Array Observatory.
Wellcome supports science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone. It supports discovery research into life, health and wellbeing, and is currently taking on three worldwide health challenges: mental health, infectious disease and climate and health.
Diamond Light Source is the UK's national synchrotron science facility, located at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire.
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