Energy Efficiency Grant

About this scheme

The Energy Efficiency Grant funds investment in technologies and equipment recommended by a prior Green for Business Report, GreenStart Report, or SEAI Energy Audit, covering 75% of eligible costs from a minimum grant of €750 up to a maximum of €10,000. It aims to reduce an enterprise's environmental impact and strengthen its sustainability and resilience, covering energy, water, and circular economy-related expenditure.

Eligible costs include metering, smart energy controls, LED lighting upgrades (as part of a package), efficient replacement equipment over 5 years old, heat recovery, small wind/hydro generation (subject to LEO technical assessment and planning permission), food waste and water management systems, circular economy systems, and sustainable packaging equipment. Solar panels, biomass/biogas boilers and other equipment already supported under separate SEAI schemes are excluded, along with building energy upgrades, regulatory waste treatment systems, and fossil-fuel equipment. Applications must be submitted, and discussed with a Local Enterprise Office, before any project expenditure or activity begins.

Who can apply

• Must be a small enterprise (1 to 50 paid employees) per the EU SME definition (annual turnover or balance sheet total ≤ €10 million, applying the linked/partner companies rule)
• Must have undertaken a Green for Business Report, GreenStart Report, or SEAI Energy Audit, and the investment must support that report's recommendations
• Must not currently be a client of Enterprise Ireland or IDA
• Must be established, registered and trading for at least 6 months within the area of a Local Enterprise Office
• Must not give rise to unacceptable deadweight (i.e. the project would not have proceeded anyway) and must be solvent, as shown in supplied financial statements
• Must be a company, self-employed individual, or partnership whose trade/profession profits are chargeable to tax under Case I or II of Schedule D (or a PAYG customer); eligible sporting bodies and charities that would otherwise be so chargeable but for a tax exemption are also included
• Must hold current Revenue tax clearance and supply a Tax Reference Number and Tax Clearance Access Number for verification
• Must have either a fixed, commercially rateable premises (rates bill required) or be an establishment approved under the Fáilte Ireland National Quality Assurance Framework (approval documentation required)
• Must own or hold a lease (with at least 12 months remaining, or an agreed renewal option) on the premises where the investment takes place; enterprises with multiple premises may apply per premises, subject to overall per-undertaking limits
• Ineligible: businesses operating solely from a domestic/home-based office; charities/semi-state/not-for-profit bodies not meeting the above criteria, trade associations, representative bodies (e.g. Chambers of Commerce), other non-commercial bodies; coal or steel sector businesses; primary agriculture, fishery or aquaculture sector businesses; gambling/gaming, adult entertainment, tobacco, and non-medicinal cannabis-based product activities
• Ineligible costs include solar panels, biomass/biogas boilers, building energy upgrades (e.g. insulation, air conditioning), waste treatment systems for regulatory purposes, fossil-fuel-related equipment, and mobile assets (e.g. electric forklifts, air compressors)
• An application must be submitted before any project expenditure is incurred or project activity commences

How to apply

1. 1Have a Green for Business Report, GreenStart Report, or SEAI Energy Audit completed to identify recommended investments.
2. 2Contact your Local Enterprise Office to discuss the Energy Efficiency Grant and your eligibility before incurring any project expenditure or commencing any project activity.
3. 3Supply your Tax Reference Number and Tax Clearance Access Number, plus supporting documentation (e.g. commercial rates bill or Fáilte Ireland approval, lease/ownership evidence, and any required project outlines or planning permissions for specific measures) as requested.
4. 4Submit your application to the Local Enterprise Office before committing to, ordering, purchasing, contracting for, or commencing any element of the project.