Green Plus

With new government policies on decarbonisation, rising energy costs and shifting consumer expectations, sustainability is now at the top of every business agenda. With GreenPlus, we can help your business to prepare for a greener, more sustainable future.

What can it be used for?

  • Training to build environmental management capabilities
  • Implementing environmental best practice within the company
  • Hiring an external environmental service provider
  • External training courses
  • Licence costs for the use of e-learning digital content for the period of the project
  • Covering part of the salary cost for up to 10 staff members working as part of the green team.

What is provided?

  • 50% of the eligible project costs up to a maximum of €100,000 (€50,000 grant).
  • Projects are typically 12 months in duration

Who is it for?

Údarás na Gaeltachta clients seeking to increase environmental management and staff capabilities.


How do I apply?

  1. Read the eligibility requirements.
  2. Contact your Client Advisor to discuss further
  3. If you do not have a Client Advisor, please contact Údarás na Gaeltachta at eolas@udaras.ie.

When you have discussed the application with your advisor and you’re ready to apply and an application form will be provided to you by your advisor.


Further application information

  • Companies will be required to provide their organisational carbon footprint as part of the application process either through completion of the Climate Toolkit 4 Business Carbon Calculator, GHG Protocol Corporate Standard, ISO 14064-1 Standard or similar.
  • Training Plan(.xlsx) is also required for a complete application.

If the company has already initiated a GreenPlus project before submitting an application to Údarás na Gaeltachta, the application and associated expenditure will not be accepted.


Eligibility information

 Who is eligible

  • SMEs and large companies that are Enterprise Ireland clients.
  • HPSU clients in receipt of Enterprise Ireland Investment funding are not eligible for 3 years after the investment.
  • Non-clients of Enterprise Ireland with fewer than 50 employees should contact their Local Enterprise Office.

What costs are eligible and what is the maximum funding available?

Eligible costs include:

  • External Training or Advisory Services provided by a suitable Service provider. Supported daily rates for Training or Advisory Services are capped at €900 per day inclusive of travel and subsistence and all out-of-pocket expenses. Note that actual costs to the company are based on market rates and may be higher.
  • Salary cost of up to 10 company green team members, subject to a maximum number of 20 trainee days per trainee, with up to 5 people to be supported for up to 40 days, at a maximum assisted rate of €200 per day. Internal project team members costs MUST not exceed external trainer, course and material costs.
  • Training course fees for specialised external courses that support the project goals. Training courses should be less than 30 days in duration.
  • Licence costs for the use of e-learning digital content for the period of the project.

For more information including eligible activities, download GreenPlus Assignment Guidelines (.docx).


Maximum Funding

Údarás na Gaeltachta will provide grant funding for 50% of the eligible project costs up to a maximum of €100,000 (€50,000 grant).


Legislation

Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) (2021-2026)

Under Ireland’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) (2021-2026), projects supporting the digital and climate transition of enterprise are being funded through the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility. This covers projects that will facilitate emissions reductions as part of a decarbonisation plan.


Environmental Compliance and Do No Significant Harm

All projects supported under the Climate Planning Fund for Business must comply with relevant EU and national environmental legislation and in particular with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01). Specifically, the following projects are not eligible:

  • activities related to fossil fuels, including downstream use1;
  • activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks2;
  • activities related to waste landfills, incinerators3 and mechanical biological treatment plants4; and
  • activities where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment.

1 Except projects under this measure in power and/or heat generation, as well as related transmission and distribution infrastructure, using natural gas, that are compliant with the conditions set out in Annex III of the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).

2 Where the activity supported achieves projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not substantially lower than the relevant benchmarks an explanation of the reasons why this is not possible should be provided. Benchmarks established for free allocation for activities falling within the scope of the Emissions Trading System, as set out in the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/447.

3 This exclusion does not apply to actions under this measure in plants exclusively dedicated to treating non-recyclable hazardous waste, and to existing plants, where the actions under this measure are for the purpose of increasing energy efficiency, capturing exhaust gases for storage or use or recovering materials from incineration ashes, provided such actions under this measure do not result in an increase of the plants’ waste processing capacity or in an extension of the lifetime of the plants; for which evidence is provided at plant level.

4 This exclusion does not apply to actions under this measure in existing mechanical biological treatment plants, where the actions under this measure are for the purpose of increasing energy efficiency or retrofitting to recycling operations of separated waste to compost bio-waste and anaerobic digestion of bio-waste, provided such actions under this measure do not result in an increase of the plants’ waste processing capacity or in an extension of the lifetime of the plants; for which evidence is provided at plant level.


Additional Information

Where can I find a suitable service provider?

A listing of services providers is published by Enterprise Ireland here Green Service Providers Directory (.xlsx).

A company may select a service provider who is on this Directory or it may select a service provider not on the Directory, in either case, sufficient information must be provided to Údarás na Gaeltachta/Enterprise Ireland to show that the proposed service provider is qualified and has successfully completed similar assignments previously.

Any provider delivering services under this scheme must not be a direct or indirect employee or director of the recipient company.

Údarás na Gaeltachta/Enterprise Ireland makes no guarantees, either explicit or implied, about the qualifications or suitability of individuals on the list of service providers. Údarás na Gaeltachta/Enterprise Ireland will not be responsible for any losses or damages resulting from a company’s choice to hire such a service provider.


Sustainability Training Directory

A listing of available sustainability training courses and providers is published by Enterprise Ireland on their website. This is not an exhaustive list of training courses and programmes and is updated monthly with new and suggested courses. For any queries regarding the training directory – please contact green@enterprise-ireland.com.


Ineligible Projects

Ineligible Costs Include

  • General Consultancy including Market research, IT implementation, Financial review and planning, HR consulting or Health and Safety training.
  • Capital equipment, materials or travel and subsistence costs.
  • Technical feasibility studies and energy audits
  • Mandatory reports under EU and national legislation, e.g. mandatory reports/sustainability statements and audits/external assurance required under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

Note, training to upskill teams to be able to monitor, measure and report inhouse, develop an ESG strategy, KPIs and targets (with a focus on environmental activities) informed by CSRD European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) is eligible.