Businesses in energy-intensive sectors, including
pharmaceuticals, steel, paper and food and drink, will
be able to apply for grants worth up to £14 million
through the government’s Industrial
Energy Transformation Fund – totalling £289 million
in funding up until 2024.
In this second competition window, the minimum grant
has been lowered to £100,000 for deployment projects,
offering more flexibility for small businesses to
receive funding so they can speed up getting their
ideas to market.
With potential projects taking place across the East
and West Midlands, North East, North West, and
Yorkshire and the Humber as well as Wales and Northern
Ireland, the government grants will enable businesses
to use new technology to improve the efficiency of
industrial processes and reduce energy demand.
They will drive them towards a cleaner, more
sustainable future as part of our green industrial
revolution by 2030 and mission to eliminate our
contribution to climate change by 2050.
This includes factories installing electric motors and
heat pumps to replace their natural gas-fired boilers
and steam turbines, manufacturers using heat recovery
technology to recycle waste heat and generate renewable
electricity, and industries such as the food and drink
sector carrying out studies to replace natural gas with
hydrogen as their primary fuel.
Doing so will create and support thousands of British
jobs, cut carbon emissions and lead to cleaner air for
the people of the UK.
Energy Minister said
We can only achieve our ambitious plans to tackle
climate change if everyone plays their part,
including businesses large and small.
That’s why our £40 million investment will not only
help some of the highest polluting industries like
steel, paper and pharmaceuticals build back greener
by finding innovative ways to reduce their carbon
emissions but will also create more opportunities for
growth and jobs by levelling up and making industry
fit for the future.
The fund supports the UK government’s mission to build
back greener and level up the country’s industrial
heartlands by allowing them to lay the path for
economic growth.
The government’s Industrial Energy Transformation Fund
is worth £289 million with funding available across
England, Wales and Northern Ireland up until 2024. The
fund supports heavy industry as the UK transitions to a
low-carbon economy.
Today’s announcement follows an initial launch in June
2020 which saw 39 applications approved for funding in
the first window, totalling £31 million.
It is calculated that as a result of these projects
carbon emissions will be reduced by 2.6 million tonnes
over their lifespan, which is equivalent to taking
38,000 fossil-fuelled cars off the road over a 30 year
period.
Notes to editors
The Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF)
window opens for applications on Monday 8 March and
closes on Wednesday 14 July:
