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A government fund designed to support energy intensive industries in the UK to cut their emissions has awarded £24 million to 26 businesses.
Drinks companies such as Heineken and Britvic are among the winners of the latest round of the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF).
The fund, first announced in the 2018 budget, is designed to help businesses with high energy use to cut their energy bills and carbon emissions through investing in energy efficiency and low carbon technologies.
Energy-intensive industries are responsible for 11% of the UK’s total emissions and represent over 70% of UK industrial emissions.
It is estimated that industry will need to cut their emissions by more than 60% by 2035 for the UK to achieve its net zero target.
So far a total of £61.4 million has been awarded under the scheme from a pot worth £289 million.
Beer company Heineken UK has won £3.7 million to upgrade their Manchester Brewery, including installing technology to recover waste heat from the refrigeration systems used to cool their beer.
Meanwhile Britvic Soft Drinks in London will use the £4.4 million awarded through the fund to implement a heat recovery system and low temperature hot water network at its production site at Beckton, where well-known brands such as Tango and Robinsons are produced.
Other winning companies include glass, car, brick and tile manufacturers and food production companies.
Minister for energy efficiency Lord Callanan said: “We are leading the world in reaching net zero, having cut emissions by 48% – but to keep up this progress and achieve our green goals, we’ve got to transform our industrial sectors, as some of the industries most critical to our economy are also those with the highest emissions.
“Today, we’re backing them with government funding to use the latest technologies to cut their emissions and their reliance on fossil fuels – helping to future-proof these industries as we grow our green economy.
“This will not only cut their energy costs but also boost their competitiveness on the world stage, helping them thrive and protecting the thousands of jobs they offer across the country.”
Matt Callan, senior director supply chain at Heineken UK, said: “We are proud to have ambitious targets when it comes to reducing our carbon footprint, within both our own operations and across our entire value chain. For over 150 years, we have been passionate about making a positive impact and more than ever it is clear that there is no time to waste in taking action to reduce carbon emissions.
“This investment and IETF funding will enable us to act faster, and with the commitment and passion of our colleagues and partners, will help us raise the bar at our Manchester Brewery to brew our beers in a more sustainable way.
“The project will make a significant contribution on our journey to carbon neutrality and provide us with the learnings to reapply across our other sites as we continue our journey to brew a better world.”
An extension to the IETF was recently announced as part of the government’s Powering up Britain strategy, increasing the total grant available by £185 million.
The next phase of the fund will open for applications in early 2024.
In February the government also launched a consultation on proposals which would exempt energy-intensive industries from certain green levies to lower their energy costs.
The British Industry Supercharger is likely to be rolled out next year.
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