New Delhi: The UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has announced £51.9 million in grant funding for 25 businesses nationwide to implement innovative emission-cutting projects. This initiative, part of the government’s Plan for Change, aims to accelerate the UK’s transition to a net zero economy while stimulating economic growth, a press release reported.
The funding will support a range of projects, including heat pump installations, carbon capture technology, and new recycling facilities. Businesses from various sectors, including food manufacturing, brewing, and cement production, will benefit from the grants.
With industry contributing two-thirds of the project costs, this funding supports businesses of all sizes, the release read, noting that it would help them expand, innovate, create new jobs, reduce energy costs, and boost local growth nationwide.
Among the recipients are Nestlé’s coffee processing site in Staffordshire, Heinz’s baked bean factory in Wigan, and a craft beer company in Cornwall. Heinz, for example, will use the funding to install heat pumps that utilize waste heat from other factory processes, reducing its reliance on fossil fuels and lowering energy costs.
Minister for Industry Sarah Jones emphasized the importance of supporting businesses in reducing emissions, stating, “These companies represent some of the best of business innovation—using new technologies to improve how we do things, become more sustainable, and continue to make the British products we love—from baked beans to beer.”