It was during a conference bringing together nearly 300 participants at the Chamber of Skilled Crafts that ministers Franz Fayot, Lex Delles, Claude Turmes and Joëlle Welfring launched the “Klimapakt fir Betriber”. As part of this government initiative, the Ministry of Energy and Spatial Planning, the Ministry of the Economy, the Directorate General for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development, with the support of the Klima-Agence and Luxinnovation, have agreed to support companies with decarbonisation and energy transition through a structured and coordinated approach facilitating the use of various initiatives, programmes, support measures and financial aid.
The “Klimapakt fir Betriber” is designed as a common strategic orientation platform that will facilitate the consultation and coordinated implementation of projects related to this common objective. The initiative offers attractive and easily accessible support to companies that choose to commit in order to guide them through advice, support measures, the co-funding of investments and access to key players and companies.
Connecting the players involved
The “Klimapakt fir Betriber” focuses in particular on finding relevant solutions and connecting companies with solution providers for decarbonisation and ecological transition. The solution suppliers can be companies and private engineering consultants as well as research organisations, depending on the specific needs of the companies.
In order to meet the needs expressed in particular by the crafts sector to develop and offer a catalogue of standardised measures, the Klima-Agence and Luxinnovation, together with other players concerned, will develop innovative solutions and identify good practices, taking into account the specific needs relating to the manufacturing processes of certain sectors. The main objective of this initiative, which can be compared to the catalogue of measures of the Climate Pact for municipalities, is to promote the skills of various organisations in a structured and neutral way and guide companies towards the relevant contact points.
In order to help companies located in the same geographical area face the challenge of the transition to renewable energies, pilot projects aimed at setting up decentralised systems for the production, storage and auto-consumption of energy in industrial zones will be conducted. They will take into account the specific needs of various types of businesses.
A wide range of support tools and individual advice is available to support companies working to reduce their carbon footprint. As part of the “Klimapakt fir Betriber”, a generalised deployment of the advice and financing offer will be targeted.
Klimapakt fir Betriber: complementary services
The role of Luxinnovation in the context of the “Klimapakt fir Betriber” programme is to support companies to innovate in the field of sustainability. “We are here to help companies innovate in order to be more competitive, but also more sustainable,” said Sasha Baillie, CEO of Luxinnovation, during the conference. The services offered by the agency are grouped together in a Sustainability Innovation Hub, which notably includes the new Fit 4 Sustainability programme that offers companies access to external expertise for their decarbonisation and ecological transition projects as well as state co-funding, a new national mapping of sustainability enablers and pilot projects aimed at developing sustainable solutions for groups of companies.
We are here to help companies innovate in order to be more competitive, but also more sustainable.
Fit 4 Sustainability is also a gateway for companies to prepare more elaborate projects that may be eligible for state aid for environmental protection. Luxinnovation guides companies submitting aid applications to the Ministry of the Economy. The Ministry and Luxinnovation have published a simplified guide in German, French and English to explain how this aid works and the eligibility criteria.
The Directorate General for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, with the support of the House of Entrepreneurship, offers SME Packages vouchers of €5,000 to small and medium-sized enterprises in order to support them with their energy transition, digital transformation and optimisation of customer relationships. The “SME Packages – Sustainability” helps companies initiate their sustainable transition through the implementation of concrete solutions to reduce their environmental impact in the following areas: energy, water, waste and carbon footprint.
Tailor-made support tools from the Klima-Agence
The Klima-Agence, the national energy and climate partner for individuals, municipalities, professionals and state institutions, manages programmes (e.g. FEDIL’s voluntary agreement) and provides these different target groups with support tools that can also be relevant for businesses. They notably include a national solar cadastre, a connection tool for charging infrastructure projects, a list of planners for photovoltaic projects and a planning guide for charging infrastructure. The Klima-Agence will strengthen its portfolio of tools to facilitate the implementation of climate protection and energy transition projects.
Klimapakt fir Betriber on tour
Based on its expertise in the management and continuous development of the Climate Pact for municipalities since 2013 – including its partnerships with municipalities and regional players – the Klima-Agence facilitates the promotion of the “Klimapakt fir Betriber” at the regional level by promoting synergies between the various initiatives. In consultation with the other partners, the Klima-Agence will organise a roadshow for companies in the spring in order to promote the various instruments of the “Klimapakt fir Betriber” and learn about companies’ additional needs related to the implementation of projects, particularly photovoltaic installations and charging infrastructure.
Close partnership
A steering committee supports and monitors the implementation of the “Klimapakt fir Betriber” in order to strengthen the collaboration and the close consultation of the partners. In addition to the ministries concerned, this committee is made up of the following organisations: Luxinnovation, the Klima-Agence, the Fédération des artisans, FEDIL, the Chamber of Skilled Crafts, the Chamber of Commerce and the Luxembourg Confederation of Commerce.
Photos: © Luxinnovation/Sophie Margue