Low Carbon Business Funding: Good News for Some
Despite current uncertainties in public policy and government spending, there is one area of economic growth and innovation which we can confidently predict will continue to be favourably prioritised for years to come: the low-carbon, renewable energy, energy efficiency and environmental ‘cleantech’ sector.
Are you starting or building a business in this space, or can you give your business some ” low-carbon” characteristics?
Clean Tech Business Opportunities
I have been helping companies for nearly 10 years in the ‘cleantech’ sector, and the changes in public awareness, government support and finance available for innovators in this category have been enormous. From a Cinderella, peripheral and untopical sideshow 10 years ago, entrepreneurs with this type of business are now served by many more opportunities, ranging from Carbon Trust, TSB and similar public policy initiatives through quite aseveralcleantech-focused venture investment institutions to earlier-stage angels specifically prioritising “green” or “clean” growth investment.
Of course, exactly what ‘cleantech’ is very hard to define precisely, and even ‘low carbon’ is quite a catch-all for diverse activities, from alternative energy generation through to ways of enabling energy reduction and improved efficiency in buildings, transport, data centres, etc. This is a wide and diverse spread of business opportunities, exploiting many high and low-tech innovations, so even companies that do not think of their business as ‘low carbon’ might actually qualify for some of the higher focus on this sector.
Low Carbon Fund
In the east of England region, alongside support from the Understanding Finance for Business programme open to all, including ‘cleantech’ businesses, we are fortunate to have grants (R&D) specifically for low-carbon activities and, very soon, a dedicated Low Carbon Fund for investing in qualifying businesses in the low-carbon sector in this region. This fund, to be launched in St John’s Innovation Centre on 27th September 2010, will be managed by Turquoise Associates, investing £8m of ERDF money alongside £12m of other capital (to be sought on a deal-by-deal basis, giving the region’s low-carbon companies access to an additional source of support alongside those generally accessible nationwide.
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