“Low-carbon entrepreneurs”: combining economic growth and energy transition

The closing event of the first ever low-carbon support programme for Monegasque entrepreneurs was held on Friday 17 November. The initiative is the brainchild of the MTE, in partnership with the Business Development Agency, and local business incubators Monaco Boost and MonacoTech.

Some 21 firms followed the programme, and were awarded a certificate on completing the course.

The “Low-carbon Entrepreneur” initiative had two main aims:

•             To show participants that becoming a low-carbon business can have a direct impact on their competitiveness;

•             To show them how to calculate their greenhouse gas emissions and define an action plan to reduce them.

 Participants used a tool developed jointly by the MTE and GIENOV, a Monegasque firm specialising in the environmental and digital transitions, to calculate the GHG footprints of their activities in the three areas that account for most emissions in the Principality: mobility, waste, and energy. The programme also suggested ways of optimising and estimating avoided emissions, based on the data supplied (mode of transport, packaging, purchases, etc.).

For the low-carbon action plan component, participants used a second tool to assign a dedicated officer, establish a deployment calendar, define key performance indicators, adopt an emissions reduction target, and estimate the costs involved.

 A total of 29 firms signed up for the initiative - most of them signatories to the National Energy Transition Pact - and 21 completed the whole course. The two business incubators had 44 firms on their books at the time of launch, and a highly satisfactory rate of nearly 50% of those firms completed the programme.

In view of its success, there are proposals to renew this unique initiative next year.

https://en.gouv.mc/Portail-du-Gouvernement/Policy-Practice/The-Environment/Actualites/Low-carbon-entrepreneur-economic-development-merges-with-energy-transition