£2.9 million to keep businesses profitable in the downturn
20 April 2009SEEDA has approved £2.9 million for low carbon initiatives that will help over 3,000 South East businesses cut costs and build profits.
Half the money is grant funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and SEEDA will set up programmes supporting sustainable procurement, sustainable design and innovation, sustainable construction and reduction, re-use and recycling. Planned targets include an 89,000 tonne reduction in the growth rate of CO2 emissions, a £3.2m boost to the region’s economy and the potential creation of hundreds of jobs.
Oona Muirhead, SEEDA Executive Director for Skills & Sustainable Prosperity, said: "In these difficult economic conditions it’s all the more important that we help businesses to take advantage of new market opportunities in the growing global green economy. This is good for profit margins and employment as well as for tackling the region’s ecological footprint. This latest round of ERDF funding will help ensure projects that can contribute to a successful, sustainable future for the South East don’t fall by the wayside, providing businesses with the resources to drive these projects forward."
The funding forms part of the South East England European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Competitiveness Programme 2007-13 that was approved in December 2007. SEEDA has provided match funding for the first £1.45 million of this round of grants.
SEEDA has recently launched a second round of this programme. One of the key priorities of this round will be encouraging micro and small businesses to work together, forming consortia that can better access and benefit from funding. The targets will be similar to the first round – improving competitiveness and businesses’ bottom lines through sustainable regional initiatives.
For further information, please contact:
Gemma Sheldon, Senior ERDF Executive, SEEDA
Tel: 01483 470180
Email: gemmasheldon@seeda.co.uk
James Fulker, Press Officer, SEEDA
Tel: 01483 484200
Email: pressoffice@seeda.co.uk
For more information please contact our press office
Tel: 01483 470155
