Regional charity Groundwork North East and Cumbria is calling on businesses to help fund environmental projects as part of its new investment portfolio.
The environment and regeneration organisation has launched the portfolio amid moves to make a difference in the climate change battle while also helping businesses boost their green credentials. Groundwork, which has 40 years of experience in environmental and community action, wants to work with companies keen to build or enhance corporate environmental and sustainability strategies.
It is championing a range of Nature-based Solutions designed to conserve, restore or better manage ecosystems to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. In the North East, Groundwork’s NbS efforts focus on its Revitalising Our Estuaries programme, with work being carried out across six river estuaries and communities in the region from Northumberland to North Yorkshire – work which is also helping scientists.
To help the cause, Groundwork is offering businesses the chance to fund the work. In return they will be able to demonstrate the contribution their investment has made in delivering environmental improvements.
A Northumberland luxury hamper company is gearing up for its busiest festive season with the help of a five-figure investment .
Alnwick based Heather & Bale sells handcrafted hampers and gifts to private and corporate clients right across the country, sourcing the majority of its products from independent producers across Northumberland and North Tyneside. The business was set up by co-directors Carolyn Wilson, Susan Smith and Laura Millar in spring 2020, and despite the pandemic restrictions the team managed to carry on fulfilling orders, helping customers across the º£½ÇÊÓƵ to bridge the distance between friends and family when physical presence wasn’t possible.
Its first online product range sold out several weeks before Christmas and since then the business has continued to grow every year. The company has its own website and also features on online platforms including Not On The High Street, Yumbles and FodaBox, stocking hundreds of artisan products.
Now the trio has worked with Newcastle based regional fund management firm NEL Fund Managers to bring in a £50,000 investment from the North East Small Loan Fund – capital it needs to ramp up growth through the rest of the year and beyond.
A North East tech firm that helps householders reduce their energy consumption at peak times has landed new investment.
Gateshead’s Equiwatt has secured £300,000 from the North East Venture Fund, supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Mercia Ventures. It marks the second tranche from the fund for the firm, which can help consumers save money via its free app.
The technology links to smart meters and smart technologies used in homes such as smart plugs, electric vehicles and electric vehicle smart chargers. Users then receive notifications to take part in energy saving events at peak times by turning off or avoiding the use of appliances.
Equiwatt began its rollout 2020 at which point it was backed by the North East Venture Fund and North East angel investor Owen McFarlane, with a first injection of £300,000. The latest sum means the business has raised more than £2m, which includes around £800,000 in grants.
The Port of Tyne has signed a new contract to maintain the supply of sustainably sourced biomass pellets to Drax Power Station.
The new four-year deal will see the port continue to import around one million tonnes of the pellets every year to supply the power station in Selby, North Yorkshire. The biomass pellets will be transported from the port by rail to Drax Power Station, which has been a customer since 2009, and the contract also includes a £1.5m upgrade to site facilities and rail infrastructure to aid a more efficient distribution operation.
Drax has converted its power station in North Yorkshire to use sustainably sourced biomass instead of coal and generates 9% of the º£½ÇÊÓƵ’s renewable power, primarily through biomass generation at Drax Power Station. The transition has helped Drax reduce its generation scope 1 and 2 emissions by 99%.
The Port of Tyne says the new deal boosts its credentials in the national supply chain role in the renewable energy market, thanks to its works to supply both Drax and Lynemouth Power Ltd, meaning that between the two customers it directly supplies 20% of the raw material to support the º£½ÇÊÓƵ’s renewable electricity demand.
