Low Carbon Economy

The Low Carbon Environmental Goods and Services market in the UK is the 6th largest in the world and is growing fast. It is estimated 1.2 million people will be employed in this sector by 2015, something Torbay businesses can take advantage of.

The sector is constantly developing so the TDA has developed a low carbon economy factsheet (see Downloadable Documents) detailing the opportunities and support on offer to local businesses.

The government is also seeking to clarify what the green economy is and the impact it has on businesses. ‘Enabling the Transition to a Green Economy: government and business working together’ is a new publication, launched in August 2011, which sets out what the transition to a green economy means for businesses. More details are available on the Business Link  website.

The government is commmitted to the establishment of a vibrant renewable energy sector and the introduction of a range of financial incentives mean that renewable energy installation is growing rapidly. Detail on how the government intend to grow the sector is avilable here in the Microgeneration Strategy  launched in June 2011. According to a Regen SW survey 2,451 renewable electricity and 919 renewable heat projects were installed in the South West last year and this is forecast to grow.

The introduction of the Renewable Heat Incentive from 30 September 2011 is expected to drive installations of sources of renewable heat such as solar and ground source heat pumps, making this a great time for Torbay businesses to diversify into installing.

To qualify for the incentives all installations must be made by Microgeneration Certification Scheme  (MCS) accredited installers.

The companies in Torbay currently registered are listed below along with the types of technology they specialise in:

A full list of installers is available via the MCS Installers Search .