Businesses based in the Isle of Man are going to be given some help by their Government. The Department of Economic Development are looking to assist companies to reduce their business energy costs, and to help improve their business efficiency.
They are going to provide zero percent green business loans in order to reduce the carbon footprint of the Island. Projects which improve energy efficiency of the business, of up to £20,000 can be offered a loan for the full amount, and all businesses on the island are able to apply.
Every application won’t be successful as preference is going to be given to those businesses which will be able to show the greatest reduction in CO2 emissions. The Government is planning to consider projects which upgrade insulation, lighting and controls, and compressed air systems amongst many other items.
This has been proposed because many companies can’t proceed with energy reducing ideas because of the capital outlay. The additional problem is that smaller businesses only look to purchase bigger items when they know that the capital will be repaid within three years. As many of the larger green installations will take considerably longer than that to repay the smaller companies become disinterested.
As the government are offering a zero percent interest rate this is a good deal for the businesses as they will be able to repay the loan quicker. The government will, of course, gain from this process because the energy usage will be reduced thus allowing for products from the Isle of Man to be exported at a competitive price.
The joined up thinking appears to make good sense for the various sides, because not only will this reduce energy costs, but it will also provide employment for local contractors to complete the projects.
It will be interesting to establish how many businesses qualify for these loans and whether they are as straightforward to come by as is being currently suggested. The other point to consider is that if there is a huge demand from companies for these interest free loans, and if they are, in the main, approved, are there enough contractors on the island to be able to implement the work. The concern may be that if there is a lack of qualified engineers ready to install these approved projects, whatever they may be, how long is the government going to make this offer available?
Overall, it seems a good forward thinking way to encourage businesses into thinking about improving their facilities and, of course, reducing their overheads. The loans of up to twenty thousand pounds which are currently on offer may not be enough to cover costs for solar power etc. In those instances will the government allow the businesses to add additional funds, should they be in a position to be able to afford to contribute towards these project costs? There are, perhaps as many questions as there are answers, but at least it appears to be some sort of a start towards a greener future for those businesses.
One final thought – over how long a period can the companies repay the loan, and is there any comeback should any business become insolvent before the loan has been repaid?
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