$5.5m to help 22 manufacturers go green

A food manufacturer, an electroplating company and a manufacturer of sailboat hardware are among the latest businesses to receive a Re-tooling for Climate Change grant to save water or reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Innovation Minister Senator Kim Carr said the 22 successful applicants will receive grant offers totalling $5.5 million to help them reduce their environmental footprint.

Recipients include:

• Spring Gully Foods, of South Australia, which manufactures pickles, preserves and premium honey; it will use the funds to replace existing boilers with a high-efficiency, low-emissions boiler;
• SEC Plating, of New South Wales, which offers electroplating and electrochemical processing services to a diverse range of industry sectors; it will implement a custom-built water recycling system; and
• Ronstan, of Victoria, which supplies innovative sailboat hardware to the domestic and export markets; it will introduce advanced production processes that reduce energy use and water consumption.

“This program is all about the government working with industry to support a sustainable manufacturing sector, now and into the future,” Senator Carr said.

Re-tooling for Climate Change offers dollar-for-dollar grants from $10,000 to $500,000 to help small and medium Australian manufacturers improve the energy and water efficiency of their production processes.

The program is part of the Rudd government’s Clean Business Australia - a partnership with industry to tackle climate change.

Senator Carr said that businesses could submit an application at any time.

“We have moved to continuous assessment of applications, so manufacturers can get the fastest possible turnaround on their proposals,” Senator Carr said.

A list of the most recent grant recipients is available at www.ausindustry.gov.au.