Business Energy Efficiency Grants: Are They Worth It?

As more pressure falls on businesses of all shapes and sizes to reduce their carbon emissions, many turn to energy efficiency grants in order to invest in cost-saving efficiency measures. Unfortunately, the Carbon Trust’s excellent Green Business Fund closed in December 2019, leaving some businesses unsure of who to turn to.

Worse still, perhaps, is the fact that while the government is legislating towards decarbonisation, larger businesses get no support whatsoever and instead face sizable fines if they fail to meet guidelines such as ESOS.

Some parts of the UK fare better than others: Scottish businesses can apply for SME loans of between £1000 to £10,000 to pay for energy efficiency upgrades, but this is a loan and as such requires repayments.

Elsewhere, specific towns and cities offer European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) business grants which are based on their own localities – with grants ranging between £1000 and £10,000 to help businesses lower their carbon footprint. If you’re eligible, these grants may be a great way to begin improving efficiency – but are unfortunately limited to the cities and councils which offer them. Now that the UK has left the EU, however, these grants are likely to change.

The challenge for most businesses is that any grants issued are for funding decarbonisation methods – but most businesses do not know where to begin in taking any measures towards this. Large businesses and industries such as steel and cement making do not have obvious measures that could be funded to suddenly reduce emissions – making grants virtually useless and instead necessitating a long-term vision and ongoing support.

All of this is a long way of illustrating a clear point: reducing carbon emissions is a journey that no existing grant truly supports. While some cost-saving measures may be funded by business energy efficiency grants, your business requires a plan that can help comprehensively reduce emissions and increase efficiency.

Free energy efficiency consultations

At Integral Energy, we can offer a free initial consultation for your business. If you are eligible for SECR or ESOS, your business is already beholden to the government’s net-zero drive without you ever receiving a penny of help towards decarbonisation.

By contacting us, you can discuss your specific energy requirements and we can help provide both ESOS and SECR compliance as well as an energy efficiency plan that helps you reduce or offset emissions without impacting heavily on your finances.