Birmingham craft beer firm Attic Brew Co is among 1,300 West Midlands businesses getting a share of £15m in funding to cut energy use and bills.
The Stirchley-based brewery is a beneficiary of the Business Energy Advice Service (BEAS) pilot scheme by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ), which has already helped 2,400 businesses.
Sam Back, Attic Brew Co managing director, is spending the funding on new energy-efficient brewing kit, double glazing and lighting with the aim of cutting its annual carbon emissions by 65 tonnes and fuel bills by around £30,000.
“The support we’ve had means we’ve been able to reduce equipment running costs, the level of heating we need and the CO2 we produce. It has also unlocked additional support to help find future avenues for improvement,” said Back.
“Without this help it’s likely we’d have had to scale down our plans to maintain the fantastic growth we’ve seen since we began brewing commercially in 2018.”
WM Mayor Richard Parker said: “High energy costs are holding businesses back. That’s why I’m taking action to make them cleaner, greener and more competitive.”
Minister for Industry, Sarah Jones, added: “This £15 million boost will help many more businesses slash their carbon emissions and save millions on energy bills.”
Once all the energy-saving measures are implemented at the initial 2,400 business helped by the BEAS scheme, the WMCA said a collective £16m a year in gas and electricity costs and 34,000 tonnes of CO2 will be saved – equivalent to the emissions produced by 20,000 cars each year.
The new funding will save businesses a further £8m in annual energy costs and cut 17,000 tonnes of carbon, according to the WMCA.
