Irish enterprises leading globally on sustainability and achieving climate action targets.
Transforming the sustainability of Irish enterprises is key to competitiveness in the future. Changes in the regulatory environment, including the EU’s Sustainable Financial Disclosure requirement, will also significantly impact the funding environment for companies.
In parallel, the transition to a low carbon and circular economy represents a clear market opportunity for our companies. Helping enterprises to engage with, adapt to, and realise opportunities from, the low carbon transition, will be critical to the long-term, sustainable growth of Irish enterprises.
Transform the sustainability performance of Irish enterprises to drive competitiveness and achieve climate action targets
Enterprise Ireland and the LEOs will work with enterprises to embed Climate Action as a strategic business priority, assisting enterprise activities to reduce emissions and contribute to achieving Ireland’s 2030 Climate Action target of reducing emissions by 29-41% in the enterprise sector.
Working with other key stakeholders, we will build upon the Climate Enterprise Action Fund and the Climate Toolkit4Business, introduced in 2021, to increase the engagement of enterprises to take action to address the climate challenge, strengthen their competitiveness and transform their sustainability performance.
Strengthen Irish enterprise to capitalise on climate opportunities and green value creation
Enterprise Ireland will assist start-up and established companies to maximise the opportunities presented by the low-carbon transition, in areas including testing, regulation and consultancy, through the development of client groups/networks in sectors such as clean-tech, energy efficiency and off-shore wind, and in supporting companies to adapt their products or services for new growth sectors.
- Deliver a significant uplift in funding and advisory assistance to transform companies’ sustainability performance and drive competitiveness, focusing on key sectors, including food, drink and construction
- Scale up Enterprise Ireland and LEO advisory and funding assistance for smaller companies to invest in technology for clean processes, waste, and energy efficiency.
- Align Enterprise Ireland funding schemes with progress towards achieving the carbon abatement targets for enterprise, ensuring resilience in the transition to a low carbon economy
- Deliver advisory and funding assistance across all aspects of sustainability in collaboration with, or through, key stakeholders (e.g. SEAI, Bord Bia), providing a clear structure accessible to enterprise
- Help established companies and start-ups to realise market opportunities from the low carbon and circular economy, through RD&I investment to deliver solutions, provision of market intelligence and connections in key markets and assisting companies to secure external funding, such as through Horizon Europe, EIC, or green investment funds
- Seek opportunities to help ambitious, collaborative investments in carbon reduction technologies and infrastructure
