Grant worth £25,000 to help Businesses go Green

Grant worth £25,000 to help Businesses go Green

 

Brighton Energy Co-op is delivering the Community Solar Accelerator programme which provides financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and is funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

 

The Community Solar Accelerator will enable SMEs to reduce CO₂ emissions by financing 40% of the total cost or up to £25,000 of either Solar PV arrays or Solar PV in combination with electric vehicle charging points. This project is primarily aimed at businesses in the Coast to Capital region.

 

To apply for a grant, you need to have at least 180m² of available roof space, which is about the area of a tennis court. Brighton Energy Co-op can help identify the available roof space if you’re unsure. This project also supports the installation of solar-powered electric vehicle charging points to develop the infrastructure for clean transport.

 

Please note that there is only a limited amount of funding available and we won’t be able to accept applications once the limit has been reached. Last projects to be completed by June 2023.

 

What are the benefits of Solar PV and EV charging points?

 

Solar panels generate electricity during daylight hours. The electricity can directly be used by the business while it is being generated during the working day. This means that you don’t need to pay for the expensive electricity supplied by the National Grid because the electricity generated by solar panels is free. This has the benefit that you will reduce your company’s energy bills and be able to invest the saved money elsewhere in the business. The Community Solar Accelerator grant can support solar array sizes between 30kW and 80kW.

 

Having seen the price hikes in electricity over the last year, generating your own electricity will make your business less vulnerable to the fluctuations in the energy market, and you can predict your costs and consumption with more accuracy.

 

For electric vehicles, there is a ‘chicken and egg’ situation where there are not enough EV charging points for people to confidently invest in electric cars, and similarly there have been concerns about there not being enough electric cars to use the charging points. Brighton Energy believe that first we need to build the electric charging point infrastructure to make EVs an equally attractive and convenient option of transport that people can rely on. But they need to be a low-carbon option and the electricity generated to charge the EVs needs to come from a renewable source. This is why they offer grant support for EV charging points in conjunction with solar PV.

 

“Many businesses have pledged to go carbon neutral and the Community Solar Accelerator grant offers them the support they need to get there quicker. The project was created in an effort to support businesses that are keen to transition to renewable energy but where the upfront cost is a barrier”, says CSA Account Manager Svenja Czubayko.

 

To find out about the grant process, register your interest via our website and speak to a friendly member of our team. https://brightonenergy.org.uk/csa/