BESPOKE EMX Guidance for SME s

Transcription

1 Guidance for SME s What is BESPOKE? Who can apply? 1. Business size & location 2. Eligible business sectors 3. State Aid requirements 4. Eligible improvement works 5. Conditions of Funding What do I need to do? 1. Contact the Team 2. The application process Contact details Page 1 of 8 August 2013

2 What is BESPOKE? Business Energy Support Promoting Opportunities and Knowledge for Energy efficiency (BESPOKE) is a Derby City wide project which is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund. The Bespoke objectives are to: Improve the profitability of small businesses particularly those in the disadvantaged priority areas of the city. Improve energy efficiency in the small business sector. Raise energy and resource efficiency awareness amongst business owners and employees. Reduce energy costs in order to increase business competitiveness. Reduce the city's carbon footprint by at least 100tonnes CO 2. This will be achieved through the provision of free energy efficiency services for small and medium sized enterprises within Derby City: Energy efficiency advice and signposting Site visits and energy efficiency survey Grants of up to 5,000 for energy efficiency improvement works (with a minimum organisation contribution of 10%) Bespoke services and grants will run from October 2012 until December Who can apply? Bespoke services and grants are provided on a discretionary basis and will only be available to those organisations that meet the eligibility criteria defined below. 1. Business size and location 1.1 Services and grants under Bespoke are only available to Small and Medium Sized Enterprises located in Derby City. 1.2 Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are defined by the European Union: An enterprise is considered to be any entity engaged in an economic activity, irrespective of its legal form. This includes self-employed persons and family businesses engaged in craft or other activities, and partnerships or associations regularly engaged in an economic activity; Has fewer than 250 full time equivalent employees; Has an annual turnover not exceeding 50m and/or an annual balance sheet total not exceeding 43m; Page 2 of 8 August 2013

3 Is autonomous and not owned or controlled by a non SME. An SME is considered autonomous provided that no more than 25 % of its capital or voting rights belong to one or several other enterprises which themselves do not meet the definition of a SME. Note: any holding by one company in other companies must be taken into account for the assessment of staff headcount, turnover and the balance sheet. For further clarification see the Europa website at: Priority will be given to enterprises located in the disadvantaged priority areas of the city. A postcode check is available on request. 2. Eligible business sectors 2.1 As defined by the European Union only enterprises engaged in economic activity will be eligible for support and as long as the support will not cause distortion in the market. 2.2 Under ERDF criteria enterprises classed as retail facilities will not be eligible for funding. This includes hairdressers, restaurants, pubs, gyms and organisations which primarily provide a service to private individuals for example purchase a product from a shop outlet. 2.3 Under ERDF criteria the following activities are ineligible: the provision of social welfare facilities, sports facilities, child-minding facilities including day nurseries and mobile infrastructure (such as boats). 2.4 Eligible businesses for the grant must be able to demonstrate that they are primarily a trade/commercial (business to business) operation for example manufacturers of electronic components, engineering consultants or commercial accountants. In line with the Regional Growth Fund, the project may seek to support businesses within the High Tech manufacturing and Transport Technologies. 2.5 Social enterprises 1 may be eligible for support under Bespoke if they meet the SME definition. To be eligible a social enterprise must be able to demonstrate that it: Trades, sells goods and/or services, and any profit or surplus is invested back into the business or community that they serve Generates at least 50% of their income from trading activities Has a clear social purpose Is owned and managed by the communities they serve 2.6 Charity organisations that meet the definition of a SME may be eligible. 1 ERDF Guidance: Businesses with primarily social objectives whose surpluses are principally reinvested for that purpose in the business or in the community rather than being driven by the need to maximise profit for shareholders and owners. Page 3 of 8 August 2013

4 2.7 The decision on the eligibility of an organisation is based on the information provided by the organisation and will be made by the Project Manager and where appropriate the Project Board. Guidance on eligibility will be sought from the ERDF Contract Manager where necessary. 3. State Aid requirements 3.1 All organisations must meet the EU de minimis requirement and must not have received state aid of more than 200,000 over the last 3 rolling years. 3.2 Grant applications will only be accepted on receipt of a signed SME enrolment form (providing details of all State Aid received by the enterprise in the previous three fiscal years). 4. Eligible improvement works 4.1 The maximum grant available per organisation is 5,000 and a minimum of 1,000. VAT is not eligible. 4.2 All grant applicants will be required to make a minimum contribution of 10% to the improvement works. 4.3 Grants can only be used for energy efficiency improvement works that demonstrate carbon savings. Works may include but are not restricted to: new physical fittings or materials that improve the energy efficiency of the building new or upgraded equipment and machinery that improves the energy efficiency of the service or process. 4.4 Applications that involve energy saving by reducing the use of carbon intensive materials will be considered. Examples of eligible improvement works are provided in attachment Grants will not cover expenditure such as staff wages, expenses or rent. 4.6 All energy improvement works projects must contribute to the objectives of Bespoke and demonstrate value for money; ideally the project will look for improvement works that save at least 500kg of carbon for every 1000 invested in the efficiency works. We are therefore looking to support projects that reduce CO 2 emissions whilst delivering cost savings to businesses. Projects that offer the most significant output gains for the funding invested will have the greatest chance of success. 4.7 Grant applications where applicable should address the energy hierarchy for example the project will encourage housekeeping measures first and may seek to support insulation improvements before any improvements in heating provision. 4.8 Applicants must satisfy Derby City Council s and ERDF procurement requirements and obtain 3 written competitive quotations for any proposed improvement works. 4.9 Grants will not be granted for projects: that commenced before formal notification of the award of the grant. Page 4 of 8 August 2013

5 requiring planning consent that has not been approved requiring consent from landlords unless evidence is supplied of their agreement for the works to be carried out. requiring new gas connections. A gas supply has to be in place before the project board can consider a project that would require improvement works that rely on gas such as boilers. that are to be carried out on residential properties; businesses operating a residential property are not eligible (home-based) that are carried out on mobile assets (for example vehicles) 4.9 Commercial property landlords may apply for improvement works for their properties if they meet the SME criteria and can demonstrate the improvement works meet the objectives of Bespoke. 5. Conditions of Funding 5.1 All grant funding will be subject to completion of a signed contract once the grant award has been approved by the Project Board. This will include provisions that the organisation must meet, for example: the repayment of grant if any information is found to be incorrect (for example eligibility status), if the grant monies have been used for works other than specified in the approved application or the site or equipment is disposed of within one year of payment the requirement for the post project monitoring the applicant must agree to complete a post monitoring evaluation which requires carrying out energy monitoring for a minimum of 12 months post improvement works and may include a site visit and a survey. participation in project advertising such as press releases and the development of case studies maintain an asset register if the resale value of any equipment purchased by the grant is over 5, Grant funding will only be paid once the improvements have been made and paid for by the applicant company. Evidence of payment in the form of receipted invoices and bank statements will be required. Page 5 of 8 August 2013

6 What do I need to do? 1. Contact the Team 1.1 Before completing a full application please contact the Project Team to discuss your proposal: E: bespoke@derby.gov.uk or T: or You will need to complete an SME enrolment form and make sure that your organisation is eligible for support. 1.3 The Project Team will assist you with identifying whether your organisation and proposed improvements works are eligible for the grant scheme. 1.4 The Team will advise you as to whether a full application is suitable or recommend that you have an initial site visit. This site visit will help you to review your current energy consumption and investigate energy efficiency opportunities. 2. The application process 2.1 If you have a suitable energy efficiency improvement work(s) then you will need to complete an application form. 2.2 A site visit may be arranged with an independent energy consultant to assess any complex processes to ensure that the best practical energy efficiency option is being requested. This survey will be used to inform the grant decision making process. 2.3 To be able to demonstrate energy savings you must be able to evidence your energy consumption is start to identify records and ensure that you will be able to monitor any changes. It is preferred that applicants can evidence 12 months energy consumption records prior to the improvement. Following the improvement works all applicants will be required to provide monitoring of energy consumption for at least a year. 2.4 All applications must include a minimum of three written quotations for the works as described in the application. 2.5 Once a full application is submitted an initial review will be carried out by the Project Officer who may request further information or clarification. 2.6 The application will be submitted to the Project Board, who meet quarterly, and will make recommendations on the approval or rejection of the grant applications. The Project Board is made up of representatives from the Council and external representatives. 2.7 Applications may be being fully or partially supported. All applications will be considered against the objectives of Bespoke and the value for money in terms of carbon savings. All applicants will receive written notification of the outcome of their application. 2.8 The Board will take into consideration the suitability of the improvements to make energy efficiency and environmental improvements, the carbon Page 6 of 8 August 2013

7 savings, the location of the organisation and the eligibility of the nature of the organisation (if necessary). 2.9 Please note that the grants are offered on a discretionary basis and the decision of the Project Board is final The funding available is time and amount limited. Applications will be accepted throughout the project until December 2014 however grant funding will only be released in quarterly phases following the Project Board assessment. In the event of the grant for that quarter being oversubscribed the Project Board will prioritise those applications that can demonstrate the best fit with the Bespoke objectives and the ability to demonstrate value for money in carbon savings. Applications that are not rejected but cannot be funded within the quarter will be offered the opportunity to be rolled forward to the next quarter Project Board Once the grant has been approved works should be commence within 4 weeks and processed invoices should be submitted to the Project not more than 12 weeks post grant approval. No payments will be made after the 31 December Grants will only be paid following: the completion of the improvement works receipt of evidence of defrayed expenditure including paid receipted invoices and bank statements to demonstrate payment by the organisation for the improvement works a site visit by the Project Team to confirm the works completed Contact details For any enquiries about Bespoke please contact: Climate Change Team Derby City Council The Council House Corporation Street Derby DE1 2FS E: bespoke@derby.gov.uk T: or W: Page 7 of 8 August 2013

8 Attachment 1: Example energy efficiency improvements The following improvements may be considered as part of the energy efficiency improvement works for a building. This list is not exhaustive. Insulation of roof and walls Insulation of pipes/boiler Boiler improvements Ventilation and controls Heat recovery ventilation Energy efficient Lighting, e.g. T5 fluorescent Secondary glazing Double glazing Passive solar space heating IR window screens External sun screens Thermostats and timers Weather compensator Building management system Renewable energy options Micro-generation options The following are among the possibilities in an industrial setting: Insulation of thermal processes Use of EFF1 motors Variable speed motor drives Air compressor upgrades Air control and tool upgrades Air leak repairs and Air leak detection equipment Processes control improvement Process heat recovery Ambient heat recovery Chilling plant improvements Dryer improvements Energy monitoring equipment Energy use analysis tools Note: some improvement works, such as double glazing will not make significant carbon savings but may work well as part of a package of improvement works. Page 8 of 8 August 2013