Funding

The Eastern New Energy project aims to build a stronger local energy and low carbon economy in the East of England. One of the project’s initiatives is a capital grant scheme to help SMEs in Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk, improve their energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. The grant scheme is administered on behalf of the project by the Peterborough Environment City Trust. Amount: Minimum grant is £1,000. Minimum project value is £4,000. Intervention rate will be up to 25% and value of grant awarded will be based on the cost (£) per tonne of carbon saved. Closing date: Available until late 2021, subject to availability.

The Business Energy Efficiency (BEE) Anglia programme provides free support to small and medium-sized enterprises in Suffolk and Norfolk to help them become more energy efficient. The BEE Anglia experts can provide independent advice on cost and carbon saving opportunities for your business. BEE Anglia also has a pot of grant funding that supports businesses to implement energy efficiency measures. Supported by the European Regional Development Fund. Amount: Grants pay up to 40% of costs (typically 30%). Maximum grant award of £10,000. Minimum project spend, including  grant & private contributions: £2,000.

The Low Carbon Across the South East (LoCASE) programme is supported by the European Regional Development Fund. LoCASE supports SMEs in the Local Enterprise Partnership areas of Coast to Capital, Enterprise M3, SELEP and Solent to develop their business and reduce their carbon impact. This includes grant funding towards energy efficiency measures. The programme is available across selected Local Enterprise Partnership areas. Amount: Maximum 40% ERDF grant contributions have a limit of £10,000, with a minimum grant of £1,000. Closing date: Available until spring 2023.

Low Carbon Workspaces is a programme supported by the European Regional Development Fund to help SMEs in Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Hertfordshire cut carbon emissions, save money and minimise waste at commercial premises. The Low Carbon Workspaces team provides free support to help you identify opportunities, calculate potential carbon savings and prepare your application. Amount: Match-funded grants of £1,000-£5,000.

The EU City Facility Fund is a European initiative to support local authorities to develop investment concepts to accelerate investments in sustainable energy. It provides grant funding to pay for services and activities to support the development of investment concepts, such as (technical) feasibility studies, market analyses, stakeholder analyses, legal, economic and financial analyses, risk analyses and further supporting tasks. Amount: EUR 60,000. Opening-closing dates: 15 October-15 December 2021.

The Rural Community Energy Fund supports rural communities in England to develop renewable energy projects that provide economic and social benefits to their community. It is jointly funded by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and managed by the Greater South East Energy Hub. Amount: Eligible projects can apply for grants of up to £40k for feasibility studies and up to £100k to cover more advanced development work such as the legal, planning and business case preparation required to start a project. Closing dates: The next two submission deadlines are 5 November 2021 and 11 February 2022.

Community Energy England is a not-for-profit organisation that represents and supports the community energy sector. A comprehensive list of community energy funding and finance opportunities can be found on the Community Energy England website.

The Centre for Sustainable Energy is an independent national charity that shares its knowledge and experience to help people change the way they think and act on energy.  A significant part of the organisation’s work is to support community groups who want to do something about climate change, energy or sustainability. Its website has information and resources dedicated to supporting these groups.

Community energy projects bring social, economic and environment benefits to London. The London Community Energy Fund has provided much-needed support to get community energy projects up and running. Four rounds of funding have been offered so far since 2017, which in total have allocated over £1 million to 86 projects.

A London-based £6 million grant-funding programme, supported by the European Regional Development Fund and the Greater London Authority to speed up the pace of carbon emission reduction. The programme provides public and private-sector organisations with expertise from a framework of suppliers to provide the technical, commercial & financial, legal and strategic expertise needed to bring clean, locally-generated energy projects into operation.

Local authorities can apply for funding to help with the costs of procurement and installation of on-street charging points for residential use. This guidance explains who can apply for the funding, how much funding is available, and sets out the application process and timetable. Funded by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles. Amount: Up to £13,000 per chargepoint unit. Closing date: Projects with a completion date no later than 31 March 2023 will be considered: It is expected that the majority of projects will be completed within 6 to 12 months of grant award or sooner.

The Workplace Charging Scheme is a voucher-based scheme that provides support towards the up-front costs of the purchase and installation of electric vehicle chargepoints. Guidance is provided for applicants (businesses, charities and public sector organisations), electric vehicle chargepoint installers and manufacturers of electric vehicle chargepoint equipment. Funded by the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles. Amount: The contribution is limited to the 75% of purchase and installation costs, up to a maximum of £350 for each socket, up to a maximum of 40 across all sites for each applicant.

Phase 3 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme provides capital funding for (non-domestic) projects undertaken by public sector organisations that combine heat decarbonisation with energy efficiency measures. The scheme is administered by Salix Finance. The Greater South East Energy Hub is supporting eligible organisations in the region to be bid-ready to access this funding. If you need assistance, get in touch with us info@energyhub.org.uk. Amount: There is no cap on the amount of Phase 3 funding that can be applied for and there is no minimum sum. Opening-closing dates: The fund will open for applications 2pm, 6 October 2021 and will close 2pm, 3 November 2021. The application form is now  available. Please note that applications will be assessed and funding awarded to eligible projects in the order in which applications are received.

The Heat Networks Investment Project (HNIP) is a government funding programme that aims to increase the number of heat networks being built, deliver carbon savings and help create the conditions necessary for a sustainable heat network market to develop. HNIP will provide £320 million of capital funding to gap fund heat network projects in England and Wales. The scheme is open to the public, private and third sectors. Funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The Non-Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (NDRHI) is a government environmental programme that provides financial incentives to increase the uptake of renewable heat by businesses, the public sector and non-profit organisations. Eligible installations receive quarterly payments over 20 years based on the amount of heat generated. Funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The Government’s Heat Networks Investment Project (HNIP) concludes in March 2022, and will be followed by the launch of the Green Heat Network Fund in April 2022. The Green Heat Network Fund is a capital grant fund, open to the public and private sector in England, which will support the development of low and zero carbon heat networks, including cooling.

To help projects to commercialise in readiness for the Green Heat Network Fund, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is providing a transitional funding scheme of £10 million. The first funding round opens 5 July 2021 and closes 12 August 2021. Download further information about the scheme here. A workshop to enable interested applicants to find out more about the scheme will take place 21 June 2021. To register your interest in the workshop, or for further information please contact the Green Heat Network Fund Team.

The government’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund provides funding and support to UK businesses and researchers. Its aim is to strengthen UK science and business innovation to take on the biggest challenges that society and industry face today.

Challenges identified by the Fund are aligned with the four Grand Challenges set out in the government’s Industrial Strategy. One of the four is Clean Growth – economic development through the deployment of low carbon technologies and the efficient use of resources. The Fund, which is being delivered by UK Research and Innovation, is part of the government’s £4.7 billion increase in research and development over four years.

The foundation funds projects that accelerate the adoption of renewable energy and low carbon technologies. Projects must have a national reach, or develop an innovative approach that can be replicated, adapted or scaled up. Grants are usually £5,000 – £50,000, or up to £100,000 for exceptional projects. Applications are accepted from public organisations, not-for-profit companies and charities. Forthcoming submission deadlines are 25 January 2021 and 19 July 2021.

Salix Finance provides interest-free Government funding to the public sector to improve energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions and lower energy bills. Salix can fund energy efficiency projects across local authority estates, with over 100 energy efficiency technologies supported. The organisation has invested over £255 million in energy efficiency projects since 2004, saving English councils over £56 million per annum. Salix is funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.