Antaris are proud to partner with SEAI in the promotion and delivery of the newest Grant initiative aimed at Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs), the Support Scheme for Energy Audits (SSEA).
The SSEA is a voucher scheme administered by SEAI and fulfilled by SEAI Registered Energy Auditors (of which Antaris is one) to facilitate SMEs to have an energy audit carried out on their operations.
The scheme is open to Applicant SME’s who spend at least €10,000 per annum on energy, are tax compliant, are registered in Ireland, and have a CRO number, are not obligated by SI 426:2014 to complete an audit.
The Energy Audit will help you to understand your energy use and will make recommendations on the most effective ways to save money on your energy bills.
The Voucher is awarded to the Applicant (the SME) who will then use it to pay the Auditor, once the audit is complete. The Auditor will claim the cost of the Voucher from SEAI.
The Voucher amount is €2,000 (ex. VAT) provided by the SEAI. In most cases, this will be sufficient to cover the entire cost of the Energy Audit Support.
The application process is designed to be quick and easy to allow quick access to the Voucher. Once awarded, the voucher must be used within 8 month period.
The aim of the Energy Audit is to identify energy-saving opportunities in a facility, process, or system. This is achieved by inspecting and analysing how energy is used in order to minimise energy use without adversely affecting outputs.
The Energy Audits supported under the SSEA will look at electricity, gas, oil, diesel, and any other energy sources that are used at the Facility. The Energy Audit will include transport fuel for the company fleet, if applicable, but will not look at processes and activities that occur offsite
The Energy Audit will consist of 3 main steps:
- Collection & review of Facility’s energy data,
- Site visit by Auditor, and
- Production of Energy Audit Report (called the SSEA Report).
The SSEA opens for applications will be open (as of 19th July 2021) and will remain open continually, subject to annual budget caps. A review of the programme is planned for the end of 2022 following which changes may be made to the scheme rules.
The 10 step process for availing of the grant is as follows:
- Applicant confirms eligibility
- Applicant contacts auditor (Antaris) to confirm the availability and cost
- Applicant applies to scheme via SEAI Portal and receives voucher
- Applicant and Auditor schedule site visit
- Site visit takes place
- Auditor issues SSEA report to Applicant
- Applicant and Auditor sign Completion of Works form
- Auditor submits Audit Data and Report to SEAI
- Auditor requests payment from SEAI
- SEAI issue payment to Auditor
SEAI’s Support Scheme for Energy Audits (SSEA) will offer SMEs a €2,000 (ex. VAT) voucher towards the cost of a high-quality energy audit. In most cases, this will cover the total cost of the audit. To apply or for more information, click on the link here.
