HOME ENERGY ADVISER.

With the impending launch of the Government`s "Green Deal", Home Energy Advisers will be needed to produce a Home Energy Advice Report, (HEAR).

Along with the existing Energy Performance Certificate Assessment the EPC/HEAR assessment will be the guiding light in the implementation of the Green Deal.

Training of the Home Energy Advisers is now in progress and the first batch of "graduates" should be out in June.

With the EPC assessment dealing with the physical details of the property, and making recommendation for improvements, the HEAR assessment will take into consideration the "behaviour" of the occupants of the property and make recommendations to improve this behaviour.

The use of "brown goods", energy use in the home, number of occupants, time spent in the home etc will all be taken into account. More information can be viewed at www.decc.gov.uk

1 NIE Household Grant for Solar Water Heating.

A Grant of £400 per system is available to homeowners in N.I. It is only available for new installations and will not be paid retrospectively. Homeowners are required to use MCS accredited installers and products.

NIE Energy Contact; Delta Hamilton, Email [email protected]

Website www.nieenergy.co.uk/indexphp/saving-energy/renewable-energy/grant-applications/

2 NIE Household Grant for Wind.

A Grant of £900 per kWp or 30% of the revelent costs, whichever is the lesser amount (up to a max of £4500). The Grant is available to homeowners in N.I. It is only available for new installations and will not be paid retrospectively. Homeowners are required to use MCS accredited installers and products. Farmers on a domestic tariff with NIE are eligible to apply but those on a business tariff are not eligible.

NIE Energy Contact details same as above.

3 NIE Householder Grant for Photovoltaics (PV).

A Grant of £1000 per kWp or 20% of the revelent eligible costs, whichever is the lesser amount (up to a max of £5000). The Grant is available to homeowners in N.I. It is only available for new installations and will not be paid retrospectively. Homeowners are required to use MCS accredited installers and products. Again the same contact details as above.

4.Interest Free Loans from the Carbon Trust.

Interest Free Loans of between £3000 -£100,000 are available for companies interested in purchasing energy saving equipment. The loans are government funded and unsecured and can be repaid over a period of up to 4 years.

Incorporated businesses based in N.I. that have been trading for at least 12 months and non-incorporated businesses trading for at least 36 months may be eligible to apply for an unsecured interest free loan of up to £100,000. For more information on the loan scheme call the Carbon Trust helpline on 08000852005 or check out the carbon trust website; www.carbontrust.co.uk/cut-carbon-reduce-costs/products-services/business-loans/pages/loans.aspx

5 NIE Solar Water Heating Grant for B&B and Self-Catering premises.

A grant to cover 25% of the installed cost (exc VAT), capped at £2500 per property. Applicants must provide NIE Energy with authorisation to pass application details to Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) in order to confirm that the business is a current registered certified tourist accommodation provider and qualifies for the scheme. Again applicants are required to use MCS accredited installers and products. Again the NIE Energy Contact details are as above.

6 NIE Farm Grant for Solar Water Heating.

A, Wash System; A grant of £900 or a maximum of 25% project costs for a system providing up to and including 300 liters of hot water.

B, Wash System; A grant of £1100 or a maximum of 25% project costs for a system providing over 300 liters of hot water. Farms in N.I. are eligible for the grant. For further information on eligibility contact NIE Energy. Again details are the same as above.

7 DARD Short Rotation Coppice Grant Scheme.

A grant scheme designed to support the planting of SRC crops for renewable energy purposes. If you are interested in a Less Favoured Area (LFA) you can receive a grant of a maximum of £1000 per hectare (up to 50% of the establishment costs or up to 60% for young farmers).

If you are located outside a Less Favoured Area (LFA) you can receive a grant of a maximum of £1000 per hectare (up to 40% of establishment costs or up to 50% for young farmers).

Contact Joe Bradley at the Forest Service, DARD for further information.

Tel; 02890524480, Email; [email protected] or their website www.dardni.gov.uk

8 Big Lottery Fund Energy Efficiency Venues Grant Scheme.

Up to 100% grant funding for communities to improve the energy efficiency and environmentally friendliness of their venues. Two levels of grant funding are available;

£2000-£10,000 and £15,000-£50,000

• The funding can be used to initially implement energy efficiency measures and potentially install renewable energy technologies.
• The following groups are eligible to apply;
• A voluntary or community organisation,
• An organisation recognised by HM Revenue and Customs as exempt for tax purposes,
• A charitable not-for-profit company.
• An organisation set up as a social enterprise-businesses that are chiefly run for social objectives, whose profits are reinvested in the business rather than going to shareholders and owners.

Contact the information team;

Big Lottery Fund, 1 Cromac Quay, Cromac Wood, Ormeau Road, Belfast.

Tel; 02890551455, Email; [email protected]

Website; www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog.energy.efficient.venues.htm

We will work with you from the As Design Building Stage through Construction, providing all Building Control Regulations requirements, SAPs/On construction EPCs, and Air Tightness Testing Certificates.

We can also advise on Renewable Technologies and help you decide which is best suited for your site and your use of the property. This will include the orientation, site size, number of occupants, and the consumption of all utilities.