Financial measures for small- and medium-sized businesses (preferential loan, tax, subsidy)

Country / jurisdiction: Japan · Year: 2010 · Status: In force · Level: National · Type: Voluntary

Various financial and fiscal incentives have been put in place to encourage small- and medium-sized businesses to invest in energy conservation equipment and facilities. Key measures are:

(1) Financial Supporting Measures

(2) Green Investment Tax

(3) Subsidy System

(1) Financial Supporting Measures

Special interest rates are applied to installing or leasing the specified energy conservation and non-fossil energy facilities.

In the case of installing energy conservation equipment, the specified equipment that complies with specific conditions can have special interest rates. This includes industrial equipment such as heat pumps, boilers, furnaces, cogeneration systems, dyeing equipment, drying equipment and many more. Specified equipment shall comply with the following conditions:

- Those whose energy conservation effect is 25% or better than already-existing average equipment.

- In case of renewal of the equipment, those whose energy conservation effect is 40% or more than the equipment before renewal.

Special interest loans are available for small and medium sized business who invest in specified energy efficiency equipment and facility. The implementing body for the financial measure is the Japan Finance Corporation – JFC. The types of loans are as follows:

1. Energy efficiency equipment and facilities: Target are factories or workplaces that invest in equipment or facilities (including replacements and modifications) that are expected to achieve more than 1% energy savings.

(3) The government took measures to support business operators by introducing the efficient equipment for energy savings. The amount of the subsidies is 41 billion yen. Before the fiscal year of 2014, the government supported energy-saving activities on a case-by-case basis for buildings and factories, but from the fiscal year of 2015, it supports energy-saving activities for all factories. Moreover, to meet energy-saving needs, power-saving and etc. in small and medium-sized enterprises, the govenment organized regional energy-saving consultation platforms to provide close advice on the subjects related to energy-saving.

Official source: http://www.enecho.meti.go.jp/category/saving_and_new/saving/enterprise/support/