The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has launched a new scheme to help the UK’s hospitality sector cut its carbon emissions.
The government will provide £350,000 for a trial to be delivered by Zero Carbon Services, a net zero advisory firm for the hospitality sector,
Under the plans, 615 small and medium-sized pubs, hotels, cafes, and restaurants will receive free energy and carbon reduction assessments. Businesses will be offered advice on making cost-effective energy-saving changes such as fixing gaps in insulation, adjusting heating settings, or switching to low-energy lighting. According to Zero Carbon Services, the average pub loses £2,000 per year through energy waste.
The Zero Carbon Services Hospitality trial runs until March 2026. The government estimates that the trial will save participating businesses over £3 million in total.
Businesses can apply to take part in the scheme through Zero Carbon Services; triallists will be selected at random to participate, and the first triallists will be contacted starting this month. All triallists must have a smart meter installed and will receive a tailored carbon reduction plan from Zero Carbon Services, as well as three months of ongoing support from a dedicated “carbon coach”.
Zero Carbon Services CEO Mark Chapman noted that climate change is already impacting the hospitality sector, with extreme weather events limiting sales and increasing food costs. He added: “Combined with other cost increases, there has never been a more important time to both recover lost profits and take credible action on reducing carbon emissions, the key cause of climate change.”
The UK hospitality sector, which is largely made up of small and medium businesses, supports 3.5 million jobs and brings in £93 billion to the UK economy each year. Minister for industry Sarah Jones acknowledged this, calling the sector “a cornerstone for communities across the country”.
Plan for Change pushes on
The trial forms part of the UK government’s Plan For Change, a multi-billion pound effort to, among other things, make Britain “a clean energy superpower”.
Other efforts launched under the Plan For Change include a recent announcement by energy secretary Ed Miliband that the government will create thousands of new apprenticeships in the clean energy industry in order to build a “clean power army” by 2030, as well as the introduction of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, a new piece of legislation which is designed to streamline the process of obtaining planning permission for major infrastructure developments, including clean energy generation projects.
The new bill will also speed up the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) regime by giving more weight to the benefits of renewable energy generation and limiting the appeals that can be made against major clean energy projects.
Meanwhile, some businesses across the hospitality sector are taking things into their own hands. As reported on our sister site Solar Power Portal, pub operator Marstons recently signed an agreement with Two Blues Solar, which, in partnership with installer Nuvolt, will deploy rooftop solar across 120 pubs owned by Marstons.
