For many businesses, the case for becoming more sustainable is increasingly clear. The more difficult question is how to turn that ambition into practical action.
Reducing energy use, improving premises or investing in new equipment can all make a meaningful difference to a business’s environmental impact. They can also improve energy efficiency, reduce costs and support the longer-term development of the business.
But it doesn’t have to mean transforming everything at once. Often, the most effective approach is identifying practical investments that make sense for the business and building from there.
Turning ambition into practical action
There is no single route to decarbonisation.
For one business, the priority might be installing solar panels or another form of renewable energy. For another, it could be improving insulation, double glazing or lighting. Others may find the greatest benefit comes from replacing older machinery, improving heating and ventilation systems, or reducing water use and waste.
What matters is identifying the investment that makes sense for the individual business.
That is an important part of the thinking behind our Green Business Loan Scheme. It is designed to help established Welsh businesses invest in projects that reduce carbon emissions, with potential uses including renewable energy, improvements to the fabric and energy efficiency of premises, upgrades to systems or machinery, and measures to reduce water use and waste.
The Green Business Loan Scheme offers funding from £1,000 up to £1.5 million and is available for limited companies, sole traders or partnerships based in Wales.
Crucially, support is not limited to businesses which already have a fully developed project ready to finance.
Making green investment more achievable
Finance is only useful if it works around the investment a business is trying to make.
Through the Green Business Loan Scheme, eligible businesses can access discounted interest rates alongside patient capital to support energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects in Wales.
The intention is to make worthwhile investment more achievable rather than simply offering finance in isolation.
And those investments can look very different depending on the business.
Swansea-based Griffiths Waste Management, part of the family-owned Gavin Griffiths Group, recently secured a loan through the Green Business Loan Scheme to support the development of a new Materials Recycling Facility.
Its existing recycling facility had reached practical capacity limits. The new facility will use automated sorting systems to recover more recyclable material, reduce contamination and cut the volume of waste being sent to landfill. It will also increase the business’s processing capacity to up to 200,000 tonnes a year, while safeguarding 41 existing roles and creating new skilled employment opportunities.
It’s a good illustration of how environmental and commercial ambitions can work together. The investment is supporting greater resource efficiency and reduced reliance on landfill while increasing capacity and providing a platform for the future growth of the business.
Understanding where to start
One of the biggest hurdles for businesses can simply be knowing what to do first.
Businesses might recognise that energy efficiency or decarbonisation should be a priority without having the internal knowledge or resource to identify which projects would deliver the greatest benefit. That can be particularly challenging when management teams are already focused on the everyday demands of running and growing a business.
That is why advice and finance need to work alongside each other.
Either way, having that conversation early can help turn a broad ambition to become greener into a practical investment plan.
Sustainability as part of long-term growth
Decarbonisation should not sit separately from the wider ambitions of a business.
Reducing energy consumption, investing in more efficient equipment and improving the way resources are used can all form part of a broader approach to creating stronger, more efficient and more resilient businesses.
We see that connection through the businesses we support. Going greener can mean investing in renewable energy or reducing the energy used by an existing building, but it can equally mean changing processes, introducing more efficient equipment or investing in technology that allows resources to be used more effectively.
Not every business will be at the same point in that journey. Some already have detailed projects ready to progress; others are only beginning to consider where changes can be made.
Either is a perfectly reasonable place to start.
I would encourage businesses to think about what practical steps could work for them. The transition towards a greener economy involves businesses of every size and sector, but that does not mean there is a one-size-fits-all solution.
The important thing is turning ambition into achievable action. With the right advice and finance behind them, businesses can make investments which reduce their environmental impact while supporting their efficiency, resilience and potential for long-term growth.
If you are considering your next investment in energy efficiency or decarbonisation, find out more about the Green Business Loan Scheme and the support available from the Development Bank of Wales.
