Testa Center access grant part-funds bioprocess scale-up weeks
Bioprocess development at Testa Center in Uppsala is now part-funded again: up to five weeks of access per project, with 70 percent of the access fee covered for academic projects and 50 percent for companies. Weeks are allocated first come, first served and must be used by 30 April 2027.
What the Access Grant Pays For
Testa Center has opened a new round of access grants covering 2026 and 2027, aimed at projects that need to develop, verify or scale up a production process for a biological product. The Testa Center access grant works as co-financing on facility time rather than as a cash award: it covers up to 50 percent of the access fee for companies and up to 70 percent for academic projects, with the applicant carrying the remainder.
Each project can apply for up to five weeks of access. Everything else stays with the applicant as an in-kind contribution, including the consumables and the personnel needed to run the work on site. Project length itself is not capped, so a project can additionally continue well beyond the funded weeks where other funding covers the extra time.
Who Can Apply, and What the Board Weighs
The call is open to academic researchers and to companies of any size, from small to large. Projects need a defined scope of work and a demonstrable need for the infrastructure, which spans process development suites, pilot-scale biomanufacturing, a range of upstream and downstream equipment, and technical support from staff on site.
An external board coordinated by STUNS evaluates each application directly after submission and returns a decision within two weeks. Four criteria drive that decision. The work must be feasible at Testa Center, technically and with the applicant’s own personnel. Testa Center must play an important part in the value the project creates, rather than simply hosting it. There should furthermore be no alternative route to the same value at comparable cost and effort. Finally, the need must be real: the grant should be what triggers the decision to use the facility at all. Funded projects also commit to reporting back through an evaluation form, immediately after their activities and again at one year and three years.
Applying While Weeks Remain
Testa Center allocates grants first come, first served, subject to availability and project approval, and the call stays open only for as long as weeks are left. Granted weeks must be used no later than 30 April 2027, which puts a practical limit on how late a project can realistically start.
A proposal should set out the project objectives and scope, the planned use of the facilities, the expected outcomes, and a timeline with resource requirements. Region Uppsala funds the call in collaboration with Testa Center and STUNS. Applicants can submit a proposal to Testa Center directly, and the centre encourages early application because the funding is limited.
